Independent Accommodation Business Grows, Welcomes Every Man Jack and First Permanent Employee
Rewritten Article:
A year ago, the indie agency Guesthouse sprang into existence, armed with a simple yet ambitious mission: slash the fat and focus on crafting top-notch creative work. And it looks like their strategy is hitting the mark, as their recent growth suggests.
Launched by Mitch Bennett, a creative whiz kid who's held roles at Baldwin&, BBDO, Crispin Porter + Bogusky, McKinney, GSD&M, and Fitzco, Guesthouse has seen its billings skyrocket by a jaw-dropping 418% in just its first year, although the agency keeps their exact figures under wraps. The Atlanta-born shop has nabbed seven clients, including Magic Spoon, Soccer.com, GreyStone Power, Raleigh Denim Workshop, Atlanta Vibe, and the latest addition, men's grooming brand Every Man Jack.
To maintain this momentum, Guesthouse recently welcomed Jeffery Quick, a Fitzco alum, as partner, brand growth. Quick's main responsibilities include hunting for new business and fostering growth across the agency's client lineup. His arrival coincides with Guesthouse's latest coup - securing Every Man Jack as a client. The financial details of the engagement, however, remain undisclosed.
Ellie Off, vice president of marketing for Every Man Jack, shares her experience, "Working with Guesthouse has been unlike anything else. Right from the start, they've been incredible thought partners, feeling more like an extension of our own internal creative team."
Bennett and Whitener founded Guesthouse following their win of Citizens Trust Bank's pitch, turning a decade-long partnership into a full-fledged business. Whitener has been honing his directing skills, while Bennett gained valuable agency insights as the chief creative officer at Luckie. This shared background has shaped Guesthouse into a flexible, agile agency model.
With Quick on board, Guesthouse aims to accelerate its growth even further. At Fitzco, he helped secure $15 million in new business over a five-year span. His partnership with Bennett and Whitener, who he's worked with for over a decade, was a natural fit.
"Jeff was an account kingpin we always admired," Bennett confesses. "He was the perfect partner to help us build a 'non-agency agency' - one that delivers great creative without the bureaucratic hassle."
Quick agrees, "Mitch, Wes, and I have a shared commitment to simplicity and clever, effective work. We're not here to sell clients services they don't need - whether it's for short-term projects or long-term collaborations, our goal is to provide the best creative possible."
Collaborating with In-House Teams
Guesthouse functions as both a creative and production house, opting to work alongside in-house teams rather than competing against them. The agency operates with a lean core team, assembling project-specific teams via a vast network of freelancers, allowing for swift execution - sometimes whipping projects from concept to launch in as little as three days.
Whitener, who honed his directing chops at Stateline Films and as a freelancer, leads Guesthouse's in-house production team.
"We spent years at big agencies laboring on big brands and grew weary of the slow speed, the mega meetings, and the cash-guzzling budgets," he confesses. "We started Guesthouse to defy the norm - to deliver world-class creative by conceiving and producing it ourselves. We see in-house teams as partners, not adversaries."
This approach seems to resonate with clients, as Off claims Guesthouse has developed "some excellent evergreen brand concepts" for her team at Every Man Jack and amplified their monthly social and digital content output.
Guesthouse has flourished without venture capital investment. "We began with a client, which immediately provided us a solid foundation," Bennett explains. "We didn't take any loans or investments - we just dived into the deep end. Year one was about demonstrating our mettle. Year two is about showing just how much we can achieve."
Nurturing the Next Generation of Creatives
Beyond client work, Guesthouse is also dedicated to mentoring up-and-coming creatives at various agencies and brands, helping them develop and present their ideas more persuasively.
Bennett and Whitener's work, much of it stemming from their tenures at previous agencies, has garnered industry recognition, including campaigns like Coca-Cola's "1,000 Song Celebration" and the Travelocity Roaming Gnome's first live-action TV campaign. Collectively, they've nabbed 15 Cannes Lions, including four Gold, as well as One Show Gold and Best in Category honors.
As Guesthouse enters its second year, it's on track to more than double its first-year revenue growth. As they scale, the agency co-founders remain steadfast in their commitment to keeping things simple: produce great work, move fast, and foster lasting client relationships.
"Kindness and creativity go hand-in-hand, and we've made it a priority to get to know our clients and work with them," Whitener adds. "There's an overabundance of battleground language in advertising, so it's refreshing to strip that away and develop genuine connections with the folks we collaborate with."
- Guesthouse, founded by Mitch Bennett, has scaled significantly in its first year, with billings skyrocketing by 418%.
- Jeffery Quick, a Fitzco alum, has recently joined Guesthouse as partner, brand growth, aiming to help maintain the agency's momentum by securing new business and fostering growth across the client lineup.
- The latest addition to Guesthouse's client list is men's grooming brand Every Man Jack, and Ellie Off, vice president of marketing for Every Man Jack, praises the agency for being "incredible thought partners, feeling more like an extension of our own internal creative team."
- Bennett and Whitener, co-founders of Guesthouse, have built the agency around a philosophy of collaboration, choosing to work alongside in-house teams rather than competing against them, with a lean core team that assembles project-specific teams via a vast network of freelancers.
- Guesthouse has achieved growth without venture capital investment, starting with a client that provided a solid foundation, and the agency co-founders remain committed to producing great work, moving fast, and fostering lasting client relationships.
- Beyond client work, Guesthouse is also dedicated to mentoring up-and-coming creatives, helping them develop and present their ideas more persuasively, while Bennett and Whitener continue to receive industry recognition for their past work, including campaigns like Coca-Cola's "1,000 Song Celebration" and the Travelocity Roaming Gnome's first live-action TV campaign.
