Working at Google is what most people would consider a return on their education investment, shiny offices, big brands, and a career that checks all the boxes. But Fred, our Founder, traded all of that for one question: How can businesses truly understand the digital opportunity and create real value from it? In chasing that question, he accidentally started an agency. One client turned into two. A campaign turned into a continent, and before we even realized it, we had built a digital agency. But the world still demanded more. Consumer demands were changing. Expectations were rising. Tech and marketing were no longer two separate things. To deliver real value, they had to move together. So, we made a shift from a digital agency into a marketing and tech services agency. We didn’t have a name for all these changes back then.
But now we do. We call it SHIFT.
What is SHIFT?
We live in a world where connection is currency and most brands are broke. How many times have you checked your phone today? And how many brands did you scroll past without a second thought? In this hyper-fragmented world, where consumer demands and expectations evolve by the second, SHIFT is our answer. We help brands capture attention in the first three seconds and stay long after the scroll by strategically blending technology, cultural insight, and creativity to forge genuine emotional connections. Because the truth is, people don’t buy with logic they buy with feeling. Emotion first. Logic just comes in to justify it, we post rationalize our decisions. It’s the reason people usually say stop being emotional, but in reality emotions are at the heart of where humans live and operate. Shift is a Hybrid Event, that will feel like a Forum, while also being a fun industry Event and get together, where we tackle today’s challenges, showcase shifting trends, learn from people building and pioneering new technology, people riding the cultural wave and ponder if brands can apply this to what they creatively do everyday.
Why Now?
The world is shifting fast. Technology evolves daily, and consumer behavior flips overnight. Today, your competition isn’t just another brand, it’s attention. If you don’t capture attention in the first three seconds, the only reason they’ll see your ad is because they couldn’t skip it. Yet at the same time, independent creators and influencers are slicing through the clutter with minimal spend. Why? Maybe it’s because they understand something many brands still struggle with: culture. Take Kodong Klan, formed in May 2024. They’re not riding the wave of Kenyan music, they’re helping shape the next one. As genres like Arbantone and Gengetone evolve, Kodong Klan is redefining what Kenyan music sounds and feels like. And maybe the secret isn’t strategy or spend but the powerful intersection of culture and creativity.
In 2020, COVID struck and disrupted everything. The media industry was no exception. A critical question emerged: Would people still buy newspapers if it meant risking their health? Consumer expectations had changed overnight, and a SHIFT was needed. So, we built a WhatsApp bot and integrated it with M-Pesa, enabling Standard Group to sell newspapers digitally, no queues, no contact, no friction. A classic case of tech meeting culture, powered by creativity. That was SHIFT in action, long before we had a name for it. The rules have changed, and brands that don’t evolve will fade. SHIFT is how we help them stay ahead and how we continue to live our mantra: creating value for our clients.
How We Kicked It Off
We kicked it off with an internal session that was led by Cris Njoki, Brian Mutinda, and Brian Kimanzi. No slides. No slogans. Just a challenge: “Stop trying to sell. Start trying to make people feel.”
They reminded us that this is advertising for the Netflix age — where attention is earned, not bought. Where loyalty lives at the intersection of tech, culture, and creativity.
What’s Next?
The SHIFT Forum.
A grand event where all the thinking, building, and culture-cracking comes together. Big ideas, honest conversations, brand truths, and a little chaos — in the best way.
The world doesn’t need another campaign, it needs something that moves people, that feels real, that sticks. This is a recipe of how we build future-ready brands.
Some of the things we shall tackle.
- Storytelling in Changing Times.
Not the tired “once upon a product” stuff. We’re talking emotional hooks, cultural anchors, and real-world loyalty. The kind of stories that live rent-free in your head.
- Application of AI for Brands
How can brands use today’s tools for Customer engagement and experience?
- Kenyan social media usage Behaviour
How are consumers consuming content and what is their consumption behaviour.
