H/L’s Trey Curtola Talks Indie Freedom, Flying Under The Radar, and Making Bold Work
July 8, 2025
Leaders at Opinionated, Erich & Kallman, MIRIMAR, H/L, MEL and nice&frank tell LBB’s Ben Conway the challenges and advantages of American independent agencies in 2025.
It's an uncertain, tricky time for agencies – and businesses more broadly – in the USA. The demands are growing, budgets are shrinking, and economic and political instability prompt caution from clients and agency leaders alike.
Independent agencies may feel these pressures even more keenly, without the resources and scale afforded by global networks to weather as significant changes as we’re seeing.
On the other hand, indie creative shops are notorious for their nimble, modern approaches, and the last few years, despite these emerging challenges, have seen a significant population in the US blossom into one of the most exciting markets on the planet.
To get an insight, we asked leaders at some of the USA’s top indies about the main difficulties they’re facing right now, and how being independent is proving advantageous in 2025.
Making Your Name Known
“Our biggest challenge is lack of awareness,” says Trey Curtola, CEO and chairman at H/L. Despite winning an Effie for data-driven marketing and having demonstrable use cases for its blend of tech and human creativity, he shares that the Oakland-headquartered hotshop is often overlooked in this niche for more established companies.
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