Brand agency

What does a brand agency do?

A brand agency builds the foundation that all communication rests on: strategy, positioning, visual identity, name and guidelines. At IW Agency, we make brands clearer, not just better looking. A clear brand says what it stands for, who it is for and why it should be chosen.

Brand strategy

Brand strategy starts with an audit of where the brand stands today. Market and competitor analysis follows, along with audience insight gathered into personas. From there we write the positioning and a brand platform with vision, mission, values and personality. You also get the brand story and the core messages that the rest of the work builds on.

Visual identity

Visual identity is the brand in shape, colour and image. It covers logo and symbols, colour system, typography, photography and illustration style, graphic elements and patterns. You get an identity that works in digital and physical channels alike.

Naming

Naming starts with a naming strategy. You get name proposals, each with a rationale. We also run a legal screening and check domains and trademarks.

Rebranding and repositioning

In a rebrand, we develop the strategy for the change, the new positioning and the updated identity. You also get a plan for the internal and external launch, and for the move from old to new.

Brand guidelines

Guidelines make the brand easy to use correctly. You get a digital brand book with usage rules, templates, dos and don'ts, and training material. A brand is only strong when it is used consistently.

Selected work

These three cases have reach well beyond Sweden. They show how the work plays out in practice.

Arla: one direction for a large portfolio

Arla is a farmer-owned dairy cooperative. We have worked with Arla to evolve its product portfolio and shape a clear ambition for the brand. The challenge is typical for a masterbrand with many products. Without a direction everyone follows, the portfolio pulls in different directions. Our guide to brand architecture compares the models.

Lurpak: a heritage brand made ready for what comes next

Lurpak is the Danish butter brand, built on 120 years of craft heritage. The task was to help it evolve and become future-ready. That is the central tension for any heritage brand. The change has to show, but people must still recognise what they already love. We explain how to make that call in our guide to modernising a heritage brand.

Hazelight: a brand that caught up with the studio

Hazelight is the Swedish game studio led by creative director Josef Fares. As the studio grew, a gap opened between who Hazelight was on the inside and how it showed up to the outside world. For a creative company, that gap is a business problem. The brand has to say what the team already knows.

There is more across all our work. Examples include Grundfos, the Danish company that moves, protects and advances water worldwide, and Google at Almedalen, Sweden's annual political forum. Swedish classics such as Ballerina and Champis are there too.

How do we work?

We always start with strategy and build the identity on it. Without strategy, design and communication become guesswork. Every design decision should move the brand closer to the business goals.

1. Current position. We establish where the brand stands today, on its own terms and in its market. The aim is to see what holds and what has to change.

2. Insight. We find out who the brand is for and what makes them choose. The insights become audience profiles the whole team works from.

3. Positioning and platform. We write the positioning and the brand platform. Every later decision is tested against the platform.

4. Identity and name. The identity is built on the platform, not the other way round. If a new name is needed, proposals and legal checks happen in this step.

5. Guidelines and launch. Everything is gathered in one place, so everyone working with the brand uses it the same way. In a rebrand, we also plan the launch and the transition.

The work does not end at launch. A design system keeps the brand consistent across channels afterwards.

What sets a good brand agency apart?

You can judge a brand agency on five points. Do strategy and design sit together? Is the work measured against the business? Has the agency handled large portfolios? Do clients stay? Has the industry recognised the craft? Here is what to look for on each.

Strategy and design under one roof

A brand easily loses its direction in the handover between strategy and design. Our Strategy and Design teams work alongside Comms, Digital and Innovation. You work with one agency, not several that need coordinating. Read more about our work as a design agency.

Work measured against the business

Ask which business problem each case solved, not only how the result looks. Our briefs start with one:

• Göteborgskex, a Swedish biscuit brand. Private labels imitating Swedish biscuit classics had made the category crowded and dusty.

• OLW, a Swedish snacks brand. OLW risked losing some of its emotional edge as competition intensified.

• Lucky Bait, a beer brand. The challenge was Sweden's strictly regulated market, where all alcohol is sold through Systembolaget, the state-owned retail monopoly.

Experience with large portfolios

Many products, brands or companies call for decisions on structure before design begins. Ask whether the agency has made those decisions before. Arla Ko is a product brand in Arla's portfolio. The task was to reclaim the cultural status of milk, one of the most everyday and valuable products there is. Epical was formed when Enfo demerged part of its organisation into a new data consultancy. We worked on the brand for the new company.

Long client relationships

A client who stays for years says more about an agency than any single case. Arla has worked with us since 2007, 19 years. Ask every agency you evaluate how long its clients stay.

Recognition from the industry

Awards show that the craft holds up in front of a professional jury. Ask what each award was given for, then weigh it against the other four points. An award rewards execution. The business decides the value.

Why choose IW?

IW has worked with brands since 1992. The agency was founded as Identity Works and changed its name to IW Agency in May 2025. Today we are around 50 people across brand, design and communication. From our office in Stockholm, we work with clients across Sweden, the Nordics and internationally.

Briefs vary in sector and scale. Sometimes a company is building its first brand. Sometimes an established company has to reposition for the future. Some of our clients:

• FMCG and food: Arla, Lurpak, OLW, Kungsörnen and Spendrups.

• Public sector and non-profit: Region Stockholm, Svenska kyrkan (the Church of Sweden) and SOS Barnbyar (SOS Children's Villages).

• Tech and industry: Google, Grundfos, Epical and Hazelight.

Frequently asked questions

What does it cost to hire a brand agency?

Scope sets the price. These factors matter most:

• whether the brief covers strategy, identity or both

• how many brands are included

• the number of markets and languages

• whether a new name has to be developed and legally screened

A brand platform is a more contained project than a full rebrand with launch and transition.

How long does a rebrand take?

A rebrand takes as long as the strategy, the decisions and the rollout require. Four things drive the timeline: the amount of strategic work, the number of decision-makers, the number of brands and markets, and the size of the rollout. Signage, packaging and digital channels have to change in the right order. That is why rollout often takes longer than the design itself.

What is the difference between a brand agency and an advertising agency?

An advertising agency usually works on campaigns. A brand agency works on what campaigns build on: positioning, platform, identity and guidelines. Many organisations need both. The brand should come first, so every campaign builds on the same thing.

Can a brand agency in Stockholm work with clients in other countries?

Yes, and its cases are where you check. Our clients include Grundfos and Lurpak from Denmark, and Arla, a cooperative owned by dairy farmers in several countries. If your brand must work in more than one market, ask any agency for cases where it already does.

Is a refresh enough, or do we need a new identity?

A refresh is enough when the foundation still fits the business and the market. An evolution keeps what makes the brand recognisable. If the business has changed direction, a revolution may be needed. We settle the question in the strategy work, before any design begins.

Which is the best brand agency in Sweden?

The best brand agency in Sweden is the one that fits your brief. An agency that is right for a new identity is not automatically right for a large portfolio. Start with each agency's cases and look for problems like yours, not just your sector. Then weigh them against the five criteria above. Our evidence is in the cases on this page. Test us the same way you test anyone else.

Want to talk about your brand?

Is your brand facing a change of direction, or does it need to be clearer? Start with our case studies. Then get in touch at hello@iwagency.com or +46 8 506 360 00.