MANILA, PHILIPPINES — Elevation Partners (EP) started in 2012 as the in-house marketing arm of CBTL Holdings Inc. (The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf, Nono’s, The Blue Kitchen, Wingstop, and more). When Martin De Guzman joined the team in 2016 following his tenure at Australian healthcare and pharma agency Arterial Marketing, it was “a small group of 14 to 16 people.” Fast forward to nearly a decade later, EP has become a full-service creative agency of 50 with Martin as its CEO, offering strategy, digital and media solutions, web development, video production, and culture marketing on top of integrated marketing services and creative development.
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Apart from handling CBTL Holdings’ brands, EP has expanded to take on clients like Microtel, Ferrari and Maserati, CDO, and Jewelmer, as well as CSR projects for Habitat for Humanity, Hope in a Bottle, and Solarenergie. EP also became the agency of record for USSC in 2018 and Generika Drugstore in 2020, and continues to service both brands today, along with a variety of longtime and newly-added clients.
With the growth of the agency’s clientele and capabilities, EP has come into its own. Its aforementioned content creation and culture marketing subsidiary, now called Mission 2, has taken on a variety of projects for PLDT, AIA Philippines, Oppo, Lazada, and more, while continuing to offer its services to EP’s current roster of clients. “(EP’s) strength has always been its business model,” says General Manager Kim Marvilla-Abrigo, who joined in 2017 after serving at McCann Worldgroup and Publicis JimenezBasic. “We were able to create subsidiaries that bring traditional and non-traditional creative and production solutions all in-house. It’s an integrated business model our brands benefit from.”
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In 2021, EP has stepped upwards and outwards. In May, the agency became fully independent of major investor Gushcloud International and CBTL Holdings Inc. while continuing to service their brands. The following month, it was accredited as a member of 4As Philippines. With its well-deserved independence and recognition, the company decided it was time to rebrand as well. Now known as simply Elevation, the agency reaffirms its promise of delivering the best ideas and executions to address their clients’ needs, no matter how big or small, brought about by a diverse team of talented individuals who are respected and valued as equals. After all, Elevation believes in creativity for everyone.
“We look for people who are really passionate, who embrace what they love and bring their different outlooks and perspectives in solving issues,” says Martin. “We want to be the kind of agency that is constantly figuring out where the world is going and how it’s changing.”
“It’s a very exciting time for Elevation,” adds Kim. “Really looking forward to seeing how the agency will grow with the amazing talent in our team while still rooted in our values of people, craft, and innovation. I can’t wait to enter a new era with the agency.”
