Tilt
What they do: A branding and design marketing agency specializing in brand strategy, logo design, web design and digital strategy
Address: 1109 Highland Road, Baton Rouge
It’s a sunny fall morning, and Tilt partners Scott Hodgin, Lonnie Carnaggio and Brendan Bayard aren’t on the golf course or prepping for a leisurely business lunch. Wearing ball caps and T-shirts, they’re grinding on client projects.
It’s been a big year for the agency, finally moving into edgy new offices in the Spanish Moon building on Highland Road, which it spent nearly two years renovating. It also marked 20 years in business. But what makes the three partners proudest, they say, is that they’ve done things their way, designing a business model that prioritizes hands-on creativity. And unlike other agencies, Tilt decided early on to eliminate account executives, placing its creative teams squarely in front of clients from the get-go.
“Clients get a better product when we remove as much of the noise as possible between them and the creative process,” Hodgin says.
Offering branding, packaging, web design and other services, the agency has grown methodically and organically, almost exclusively by word-of-mouth referrals. The strategy has yielded year-over-year growth almost every year since it opened. The company works with clients across the country.
The firm has intentionally kept its staff moderately sized. Currently, the team has 11 members.
“We’ve had no turnover in five years,” Hodgin says. “We’ve found a way to make our culture work.”
Tilt has been particularly successfully in food and beverage packaging, creating new looks for Blue Plate Mayonnaise, Bayou Rum, Camellia, Seven Three Distilling and several craft beers. A strong relationship with the sector helped the company bolster sales during the pandemic when demand for groceries and alcoholic beverages shot up. But that’s by no means its only focus. Tilt prides itself on being able to pivot across sectors, its partners say.
“Don’t be afraid to change and pivot and keep evolving,” Bayard says. “You just have to embrace change and be creative no matter what the landscape.”
1 Key to Success
“Don’t be greedy. Don’t overcharge, and don’t be greedy with work, because it’ll bite you in the end.” – Scott Hodgin
