This story was written for WRAL TechWire Advisor partner Momentum Learning.

What do the American Underground, local coding school Momentum Learning, comedian Aziz Ansari, and celebrity foodie and social media queen Chrissy Teigen all have in common?

Manufactur.

If you haven’t heard of Manufactur, it’s only a matter of time. As “a global agency with a local feel,” its client roster includes well-known names like Skrillex, and Kendall and Kylie Jenner. They’ve built websites for drink companies (Health-Ade Kombucha, Lucha Tequila) and designed logos for businesses with names like Tramp Stamp Granny’s (a piano bar) — and that’s only scratching the surface of their resume.

Headquartered in Los Angeles with an office in Durham, the creative agency does strategy, branding, web builds and design.

“My co-founder and I are from Charleston, S.C., originally. We both moved to LA for much different reasons, but we started Manufactur in 2011. We’re about 10 people now, but we’re growing pretty fast. We have four here in Durham — we started our Durham office about two years ago,” said co-founder and creative director Nick DeNitto. “I was lucky enough to get some office space in American Underground, and they were so good to us, but we recently moved into an office space on Ramseur Street beside Smashing Boxes. We’re just trying to grow here in Durham.”

There were several reasons behind Manufactur’s “East Coast Hub” in Durham, as DeNitto calls it. For one, it makes communicating with New York-based and European clients easier. The accessibility and reliability of the RDU Airport also made the area more appealing over Nashville, Asheville or Charlotte. DeNitto has to frequently travel back and forth from Los Angeles and said the relaxed airport is a major perk.

Additionally, the amount of entrepreneurial, creative and local talent in the area is not only enticing, but inspiring.

“The fact that McKinney is here, and Baldwin& —  pretty big agencies exist here,” DeNitto said. “I think it’s kind of an interesting landscape right now. We fit into a niche where we can take on startups and consumer products that are maybe too small to afford those guys.”

DeNitto said that businesses who are trying to “bootstrap their company with just friend and family funds” have come to Manufactur looking for a way to elevate their brand at an agency that isn’t necessarily taking on clients with only massive spends and budgets.

Manufactur, which has worked with local clients like American Underground and Carolina Yoga, isn’t just about attracting household names, but also cares about things like “next big nut butter” too.

“Durham and the Triangle at large are really cool, and some awesome brands and products exist that are based here, but I think it’s still really difficult for startups that don’t fit into the traditional niche that is being invested in here,” DeNitto opined, referring to the heavy tech and healthcare investment scene in Raleigh-Durham.

However, Manufactur has no doubt benefited from the tech talent pool in the area, and setting up shop in the Triangle has also allowed the agency to make connections and tap into it.

Manufactur recently hired a junior developer who graduated from Momentum’s coding school in Durham. After attending Momentum’s Demo Day (a pitch presentation on steroids for app ideas), DeNitto was impressed with Hank Mitsch’s project for predicting the best weather for surfing. Since being hired, Mitsch has been “killing it,” and DeNitto said he’s excited to keep growing the Manufactur team in the Bull City.

Looking ahead, Manufactur has several exciting projects in the pipeline, including work for the James Beard Foundation and Brad Pitt’s new tea company, Enroot, and the launch of Chrissyteigen.com.

The agency also has its eyes set on a notable partnership it plans to roll out this summer with a local company. While the details aren’t public yet, the agency’s history speaks for itself — it’s a company that’s making waves on both coasts, proving that creativity supported by the right team and tools is more relevant than ever.

This story was written for WRAL TechWire Advisor partner Momentum Learning.