Mischief Is 'Unignorable' as ADWEEK's 2024 Midsize Agency of the Year

For Greg Hahn, co-founder and chief creative officer of Mischief @ No Fixed Address, the riskiest thing a brand can do is be “ignorable." Mischief’s own brand of creativity has been hard to ignore the past few years. Producing brave work for clients, from Goldfish's "Chilean Sea Bass" rebrand to Coors Light's "Time Capsule" spot, Mischief has held to what Hahn describes as a mission to “create a stir and a conversation.” The agency has consistently earned a spot as one of ADWEEK’s agencies of the year since 2021. It keeps its place on the list as 2024 Midsize Agency of the Year, owing to a provocative approach that has delivered a revenue increase of 36% in the year to December. The agency has been profitable every year since its inception. Mischief has grown from six full-time employees to over 100, with 24 new hires in the past 12 months. Both staff and client retention sat at 97% this year. It works in a hybrid model and will move to a bigger office in New York at the start of 2025 to accommodate its growing team. Work that speaks for itself As Mischief grows, it remains founder-funded, owned, and operated. While it doesn’t refuse to pitch entirely, it hasn’t spent the last year chasing new business; instead, it’s invested in clients, declining 91% of the 250 new business offers it received. Its commitment to creating thought-provoking campaigns has paid off, earning the agency new accounts in 2024 including Goldfish Crackers, MGM Resorts, and Carter’s—all without a pitch. “It’s a superpower to be able to know exactly what kind of work you want to put out in the world, because it filters who we work with,” said partner and executive creative director Kevin Mulroy. Mischief doesn’t work with just any brand, either. When approached by a potential client, the team ensures that brands are intelligent, nice, aware of its creative process—and willing to pay fairly. “Beyond that, are we right for them?” said Mischief partner and president Kerry McKibbin. “We want to make sure that we are the right agency for them versus trying to be something we’re not for the sake of winning the business.” Marrying creative and strategy At Mischief, creative and strategy teams work in tandem. “Teams are going to get to ideas much quicker because we did the homework beforehand,” said partner and ECD Bianca Guimaraes. Rather than passing the baton during the planning process, the creative team, strategy team, and clients work together, McKibbin added. The first step is strategizing and gathering insights before finding the most compelling way to articulate an idea. That process is evident in its Coors Light ads—including “Time Capsule,” which found a workaround for the rule prohibiting NFL players for promoting alcohol. Tinder chief marketing officer Melissa Hobley said Mischief’s bold creativity is driving results. The agency is behind the brand's “It Starts With a Swipe” campaign, creating mini rom-com films to reassure daters that they can find romance online. “We’re seeing major lifts in brand consideration among Gen Z and dispelling myths that growing up in a connected world doesn’t mean missing out on romance,” she shared. Consistent creative potency Over the last year, Mischief has helped brands like Chili’s and Tubi grow their cultural relevance. The restaurant chain leaned on social listening to reinsert itself into culture, enlisting Vanderpump Rules reality stars Scheana Shay and Katie Maloney in April for a spot promoting its tequila-based espresso martinis. “Their creative track record speaks for itself, but I don’t think their strategic work gets enough credit,” said Chili’s CMO George Felix. Felix first worked with Mischief at Tinder, where he was previously CMO. “They consistently create work that gets noticed and breaks through the clutter,” he said, adding Chili’s has seen a nearly 15% increase in sales and 6% traffic growth in its latest earnings report. Tubi CMO Nicole Parlapiano was also introduced to Mischief at Tinder, where she worked alongside Felix as its vp of marketing for North America. Like Felix, Parlapiano continued working with the agency when she joined Tubi in 2022. Mischief was behind the streaming platform’s first Super Bowl ad in 2023, which stumped viewers by staging an interface interruption. The agency has created spots for the brand, like its “Free for Everyone” ads, that have been “instrumental in helping establish our brand identity,” said Parlapiano. “[Mischief doesn’t] fear conflict, whether that's a difficult truth they want us to lean into or in the way we work together,” she said. “We don’t always agree, but I like the dialogue it encourages and I prefer it over having an agency that just takes orders.” STATS Key wins: Goldfish Crackers (AOR), MGM Resorts (AOR), Carter's (AOR), Jameson Whiskey (creative partnership), Pizza Hut (creative partner for cultural buzz work) Losses: FanDuel Casino, Pizza Hut (social responsibilities) Revenue: Mischief forecasts revenue will increase by 36% year-over-year in 2024. Strategic moves: The agency built an in-house social studio and made new hires across its social media and creative teams. Mischief says its staff and client retention rate is 97%. Diversity: 29% of Mischief’s staff identify as minorities and 53% identify as women, with 42% of leadership identifying as women. Mischief partners with Girls Write Now, a nonprofit serving underrepresented girls and gender-expansive youth, and talent management and DEI consultancy The Cee Suite. The Work Tinder: "Rescue | It Starts With a Swipe" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7XTcEB_E44Y To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before actress Lana Condor returns to the rom-com scene for Tinder. A few of the dating app’s “It Starts With a Swipe” spots are inspired by real conversations between couples who met on the app. For “Rescue,” Condor literally falls in love in a library. Tubi: "Proud to Be Free" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UdVvGOBUjyk Tubi’s “Free for Everyone” is arguably an inclusive marketing campaign, as the Fox ad-supported streaming platform reinforces that it is, quite literally, free for everyone. From first responders and teachers to women who take day naps and kids who skip class to throw rocks at windows, anyone can enjoy Tubi’s content with no financial barriers. Coors Light: "Time Capsule" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pS_CR3I9MPw Patrick Mahomes is a beer fan, but the NFL prohibits players from promoting alcohol. Mischief decided to lean into this obstacle by ideating a slew of workarounds. Its latest example, “Time Capsule,” sees the three-time Super Bowl champion shooting an adventurous ad before someone on set suggests burying it in a time capsule until Mahomes retires and can actually promote the beverage. Chili's: "Espresso Martini " https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-CNhzmtdPH0 Chili’s added tequila-infused espresso martinis to its menu as the drink continues to rise in popularity. Vanderpump Rules stars Scheana Shay and Katie Maloney, alongside real Chili’s customer Todd, help promote the drink in true reality TV fashion, as the camera cuts to confessionals about their love for tequila.

Agency of the Year

Mischief Is 'Unignorable' as ADWEEK's 2024 Midsize Agency of the Year

The independent agency doesn't pitch, and extensively vets prospective clients

Cydney Lee

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