VGCA

VGCA is an independent, full-service creative agency with offices in Durham, North Carolina and Austin, Texas. It produces advertising campaigns, branding and design, video and photography content, brand strategy and media planning for clients across many industries.

The agency reports more than 20 years of experience and is led by Rob McKinnie, executive creative director, Scott Stripling, creative director and writer, and Ashley Audia, director of strategy and accounts. The leaders have worked at agencies including Mullen-Lowe, Martin, GSD&M, Publicis and DDB. VGCA says it stays small by design and builds a team around each client's needs, which it says keeps overhead low. Each job starts from a focus on truths, and the agency describes its mindset as "what if? Why not?" It also takes on pro bono campaigns for causes it considers worthwhile.

• Advertising: brand campaigns, outdoor and print, product launches, recruitment and social campaigns, TV, video and film
• Design: branding and identity, naming, packaging, signage and wayfinding, website design, experiential and events
• Content: photography, video production, script writing and conceptual ideation
• Brand strategy: positioning, market and audience research, integrated campaigns
• Media: planning and buying through partner Bridge Media, covering TV, radio, podcasts, social, digital and paid search

VGCA does not specialize in one sector and has worked in areas such as automotive, finance, trucking and government. Client names on its site include AT&T, Dell, Southwest Airlines, BMW, MetLife, Walmart, PepsiCo, American Airlines, Extraco Banks and Capital Metro. Featured projects include the LAPD campaign "Unrivaled Since 1869," Pyland Ranch, the Aurora product launch and Hate For Good, also known as Team I Hate Cancer.