Brands always need to keep an ear to the ground but they rarely drive meaningful change in the communities that they wish to address. Josh Tenser and Rani Patel launched CALLING, their new agency, to change that.
Consumer expectations are always shifting. Culture moves at the speed of light. In such an ecosystem, brands need a creative team that adapt. CALLING is a collective of people who want to create a world in which brands can go beyond advertising campaigns and leave a lasting impact on consumers.
The agency already has 3 clients: global footwear icon Dr. Martens, mental health service Self Space and progressive dating brand Inner Circle. Along with CALLING, Tenser and Patel also launch CALLING VERSES, a publishing platform that amplifies unheard voices.
Josh Tenser, Executive Creative Director, comments: ‘Advertising has always been a game of visibility. And still the important things are rarely seen in the work we make. Communities, societal relevance, deep emotion, cultural nuance. The most powerful change often comes from the margins. The mainstream rarely produces the stuff that’s exciting and different. That’s why CALLING was born. We chose to create a company that represents the world we want to see’.
Managing Director of CALLING, Rani Patel, adds: ‘Too often brands speak to culture and purpose but fail to put down roots or drive meaningful change. The opportunity is there, and we want to create a place where businesses can take it beyond lip service. My career has been built on creating brands that actually mean something to the communities they engage with, even when the advertising campaign ends. CALLING has been set up with the belief that there is much more that brands can do to meet the real needs of consumers today and tomorrow. This isn’t altruism — it’s a strategy for creating business growth through deeper connections with diverse audience groups.’
Featured image: Josh Tenser and Rani Patel / CALLING
