Meet B_RD: Design Agency of the Year Joins the SDD Family.
From a conversation in a coffee shop to an international creative and production agency recently crowned Design Agency of the Year at the Creative Retail Awards 2026, B_RD has spent the past decade building a business around creativity, craftsmanship and relationships.
As the first founding member of the SDD Family, directors Nathan Hicks, Gabrielle Assenza and Stephen Bunting share the thinking behind the work, the importance of doing things differently and why the future of physical retail is something worth getting excited about.
Gabrielle Assenza, Stephen Bunting, Nathan Hicks and Ben Needham, B_RD.
Behind every great retail experience is a group of people who rarely get the recognition they deserve. The designers, creative thinkers, makers, production teams and problem-solvers turning ambitious ideas into physical reality.
We see their work everywhere. In the windows that stop us in our tracks, the pop-ups that take over our feeds, the stores that make us want to stay a little longer and the unexpected moments that remind us just how creative the physical world can be.
But how often do we stop to think about the people and agencies making it all happen?
Shop Drop Daily has always been about discovering, celebrating and sharing the work that's pushing physical retail and brand experience forward. The SDD Family is the next chapter in that story.
A carefully curated community of creative agencies shaping what brands do IRL, the SDD Family is about more than giving great work greater visibility. It's about the thinking behind it, the people responsible for it and creating stronger connections across an industry that has never been short of brilliant ideas, but doesn't always get the recognition it deserves.
And we couldn't think of a more fitting agency to welcome as our first founding member than B_RD.
Recently crowned Design Agency of the Year at the Creative Retail Awards 2026, B_RD has spent the past decade building an international agency that brings creative ambition, technical expertise and production craftsmanship together under one roof.
From immersive retail installations and window displays to complex brand activations, its work demonstrates what happens when the people imagining an experience are closely connected to those responsible for making it real.
What stood out to us about B_RD wasn't simply the scale of its portfolio or its recent award recognition. It was the thinking behind the work. It's an agency that understands that great physical experiences depend as much on technical knowledge, craftsmanship and the people making things happen as they do on the original creative idea.
That combination of ambition and practical expertise is exactly what we want the SDD Family to represent.
To mark B_RD joining the SDD Family, we spoke with three of the agency's directors, Nathan Hicks, Gabrielle Assenza and Stephen Bunting, about where it all began, the projects and partnerships that have shaped the business, and what the industry needs to keep moving forward.
Nike Pegasus, Sports Direct, London
From a coffee shop to Design Agency of the Year
Every agency has an origin story, but B_RD's is a particularly good reminder that even the most ambitious businesses tend to begin with something relatively simple.
For Gabrielle, it goes back to a conversation in a coffee shop.
"B_RD was created 10 years ago in a small Costa Coffee shop, with a big ambition and a real passion for what we wanted to create."
That ambition has taken the agency considerably further than its founders might have imagined at the time.
Founded in 2016, B_RD has developed into an international creative and production business, working with global brands across retail environments, events and brand experiences. Its capabilities now extend from initial creative concepts and design through to technical development, manufacturing, logistics and installation.
The scale has changed, but Gabrielle is clear that the principles behind the business haven't.
"From the very beginning, B_RD has been built on the belief that the best work comes from genuine partnerships, a deep understanding of our clients, and a truly personal approach."
For her, retaining the attentiveness of a boutique agency has been one of the most important priorities as the business has grown. Every client has a dedicated team that takes the time to understand its brand, creative direction and tone of voice. It's a deliberate approach, designed to ensure that clients feel the same level of attention and investment regardless of how large or complex the project becomes.
Stephen describes the agency's evolution as a response to what its clients have needed, rather than growth for the sake of growth.
"We started with a simple belief that great work could be created by doing things a little differently. Over the past ten years that desire and belief have remained, whilst the business offering has evolved, grown and iterated to match our client's needs."
Nathan takes that idea a little further. For him, the agency's individuality is something to protect, not dilute.
"We are a true collective, an ever-growing group of like-minded creatives all unique in our approach with one common mission! Our goal is not to be like any other agency, our difference is our advantage."
It's an interesting way to describe an agency that works across so many disciplines.
Rather than defining itself through one particular creative style or type of project, B_RD sees its strength in bringing together different minds, personalities and capabilities.
That collective approach has helped shape the business over the past decade, and its recent recognition as Design Agency of the Year feels like a significant milestone in that journey.
Awards can never tell the whole story of an agency, but in this case the recognition reflects years spent developing the people, relationships and capabilities required to deliver ambitious creative work consistently.
And while it's an opportunity to reflect on how far the business has come, there's a sense from all three directors that B_RD is still very much looking forward.
Prada Beauty, Wisteria Pop-Up, Selfridges London
Creativity is one thing. Making it happen is another.
One of the things that stands out about B_RD is how closely its creative and production capabilities are connected.
In an industry where a project can move between creative agencies, technical specialists, fabricators and installation teams, B_RD has invested in bringing much of that expertise together.
The ambition is relatively simple: make the distance between an idea and its execution as small as possible.
But the implications are significant.
Anyone who has worked on a physical retail project knows that even the strongest creative concept can quickly encounter the realities of materials, engineering, budgets, deadlines and the practical limitations of a space.
The creative vision is only part of the challenge. Making it work in the real world requires an entirely different level of understanding.
For Stephen, having those capabilities sitting together changes the conversation from the outset.
"There are no gaps in our process as it happens under one roof."
As he explains, the proximity of the teams allows for immediate conversations, faster decisions and problems to be solved collaboratively rather than passed between disconnected disciplines.
"Having design and production under one roof is a huge advantage. It allows us to push creative boundaries while knowing exactly how to deliver."
For Gabrielle, that integration is equally important to the quality of the experience itself.
"We're not just thinking about what something could look like; we're thinking about how it will feel, how people will experience it, and how we can bring that vision to life in the most impactful way possible."
It's a distinction that matters.
A beautiful render isn't an experience. Neither is a technically impressive structure that fails to communicate anything meaningful about the brand.
The interesting work happens when creativity, storytelling, materiality and execution come together.
Gabrielle explains that the agency's integrated approach means technical challenges can be considered from the beginning, rather than becoming obstacles towards the end of a project.
Sometimes that means rethinking a design, finding a clever production solution or exploring an entirely different way of achieving the intended effect.
The objective is to protect the creative ambition while finding the best way to deliver it.
For Nathan, that responsibility extends to every stage of the process.
"Every Project begins with a question – we provide the answer! We pride ourselves in our craft, delivering every detail from concept, technical development, through to production and installation."
But there's another part of Nathan's thinking that says just as much about the agency's culture.
"Failure is not the enemy – it's the best information for us to get where we need to be!"
It's a useful perspective in an industry where originality often demands experimentation.
Brands want something people haven't seen before, but delivering it requires the confidence to test ideas, challenge assumptions and occasionally discover that a different approach might be better.
The ability to do that without losing sight of the original creative ambition is where integrated design and production can make a real difference.
Kurt Geiger, Oxford Street, London
The work speaks for itself
Of course, the clearest way to understand an agency is through the work it creates.
B_RD's portfolio demonstrates the variety of ways physical environments can bring a brand's identity, storytelling and creative ambition into the real world.
And while the projects differ in scale and purpose, they share a common understanding that the details of a physical experience matter.
For Gabrielle, one project that particularly captures B_RD's approach is Pandora Wonders, created in collaboration with stylist Harry Lambert.
The three-day public experience at Battersea celebrated the launch of a new Pandora collection, bringing the brand's world into a physical environment that people could explore and engage with.
It was an opportunity to move beyond traditional product presentation and create something more immersive around the collection.
What makes a project like this interesting is the relationship between the creative world being imagined and the practical realities of constructing it.
Every element has to work together. The design, materials, finishes and physical details all contribute to how visitors understand and interact with the brand.
And while the finished environment might feel effortless, that experience depends on the technical knowledge and craftsmanship behind it.
It's a reminder that the strongest brand experiences don't simply show people what a brand sells. They give people something to step into, participate in and remember.
Another project highlighted by the team is the Prada Wisteria launch at Selfridges.
Stephen identifies it alongside Pandora Wonders as an example of what B_RD's teams can achieve when creativity, technical expertise and craftsmanship work together.
Retail installations like this demonstrate the importance of translating a creative idea into something that works at scale, within the practical demands of an existing retail environment.
The relationship between materials, construction and finish determines how successfully that idea translates into the real world.
For an agency that integrates design and production, those decisions aren't simply left until the final stages of a project. They're part of the creative conversation from the beginning.
Hackett, Regent Street, London
B_RD's work with Hackett offers another perspective on the agency's capabilities.
Gabrielle points to the windows the team has created for the brand as examples of storytelling brought to life through thoughtful design and creative execution.
Window displays remain one of retail's most accessible forms of communication.
They're experienced by customers and passers-by alike, often before anyone has made a decision to enter the store.
When done well, they create a moment of curiosity, communicate a point of view and give a familiar brand something new to say.
The challenge is finding that balance between creative freshness and brand recognition, while ensuring the execution is strong enough to deliver the intended impact.
B_RD's wider portfolio, including work with brands such as Kurt Geiger, Foot Locker, Gymshark and Casablanca, further illustrates the agency's versatility.
There's no single creative formula that works for every brand.
And that's perhaps one of the strongest arguments for an agency built around a collective of different creative and technical disciplines.
The opportunity isn't to make every client look like B_RD. It's to understand what makes each brand distinctive and find the most compelling way to express it physically.
Sheep Inc. Newburgh Street, London
The relationships behind the work
There's something that comes through particularly strongly when speaking with B_RD's directors.
For all the discussion about creative thinking, production capability and international expansion, they repeatedly return to relationships.
Not simply winning clients, but understanding them. Not just delivering a project, but building the trust that makes the next one possible.
It's a less visible part of the creative process, but arguably one of its most important.
Because the relationship between a brand and its agency has a direct influence on how far an idea can go.
Gabrielle makes an interesting observation about what genuine partnership requires.
"Of course, that doesn't mean always saying yes."
It's a point worth exploring.
A client doesn't necessarily need an agency that agrees with everything. They need people who understand what they're trying to achieve, have the expertise to challenge an idea when appropriate and are invested enough in the outcome to have those conversations.
Gabrielle explains that sometimes this means telling a client that something they want to achieve may not be possible in quite the way they imagined.
But rather than seeing that as a limitation, she believes it's where the strength of a relationship becomes apparent.
"It's about having the confidence to challenge, collaborate and find the right solution together."
For Stephen, trust is equally fundamental.
"For B_RD, trust is everything. It's about being honest, delivering on promises and genuinely caring about the outcome."
But he also points out that trust requires something from both sides.
The best work happens when clients and agencies can speak openly, challenge ideas, make decisions together and respect the expertise each person brings to the project.
It's why the hundreds of conversations that take place behind the scenes are so important.
They're rarely visible in the finished case study, but they shape the quality of the work.
For Nathan, that responsibility comes down to consistency and an almost obsessive attention to detail.
"Notice what others miss. The devil is always in the detail."
He talks about the importance of noticing the things that other people overlook, maintaining high standards and recognising that excellence is built through the everyday decisions made throughout a project.
"Good habits create good work. The way we do anything is the way we do everything!"
It's a fitting reminder that exceptional physical experiences aren't created through big ideas alone.
They're built through the accumulation of hundreds of smaller decisions, often made by people whose names never appear alongside the finished work.
And perhaps that's what ultimately defines a successful creative and production agency: not simply its ability to create something impressive once, but the discipline, relationships and expertise to do it consistently.
That philosophy also helps explain how B_RD has developed long-standing partnerships with global brands.
Stephen describes much of the agency's growth as coming from existing clients who have continued to trust the team with more work.
For Gabrielle, those relationships are particularly valuable because they evolve alongside the brands themselves.
Clients change, businesses grow, priorities shift and new challenges emerge.
An agency that understands those changes can become a long-term creative partner rather than simply another supplier.
And while B_RD's recent recognition at the Creative Retail Awards is an important achievement, Stephen is clear about where awards sit in the bigger picture.
"We see them as the icing on the cake."
For him, happy clients, consistently strong creative work and a positive agency culture remain the more meaningful measures of success.
Flannels x Off White Activation, Leeds
Growing globally without losing what makes you different
As B_RD has grown, so too has the geographical reach of its work.
The agency has developed an international presence, including teams in New York and Amsterdam, allowing it to work more closely with clients across multiple markets.
But building an international creative and production business introduces a different set of challenges.
How do you maintain consistent standards across countries? How do you ensure teams share the same culture? And how do you scale without losing the personal relationships that made clients choose the agency in the first place?
For Stephen, international expansion came from a combination of client demand, commercial ambition and a willingness to invest in the business.
"Our growth has really been driven by our existing client successes, and them wanting more!"
But he also acknowledges that growing into new markets required a degree of confidence before every outcome was certain.
"We had a hunch that our success in the UK could be mirrored in Europe and the US if we kept the same values, approach to creativity and projects, and recruited the best people."
It's a reminder that growth often involves taking a calculated risk.
The agency's international teams have continued to develop, creating opportunities to work with both existing clients and new brands across different markets.
But for Gabrielle, the decision to establish a presence internationally was also about protecting the quality of the relationships B_RD had already built.
Having supported global clients from the UK for years, the team recognised that delivering increasingly ambitious projects across multiple regions would eventually require people on the ground.
And that brings the conversation back to the importance of the team.
"For us, it always comes back to people. They are, without question, our greatest investment."
It's a particularly important point for an agency working across physical environments.
Every market has its own regulations, suppliers, cultural considerations and ways of working. Being closer to the places where projects are delivered makes it easier to understand those differences and respond to them.
But international growth also requires a shared understanding of what the agency stands for.
For Nathan, that ambition is summed up in a simple philosophy.
"We believe, to truly succeed, you must dream big! Never let people box you in."
He believes B_RD shouldn't allow itself to be limited by geography or by conventional definitions of what an agency can achieve.
That willingness to take risks has helped drive the business forward, but he also recognises that maintaining standards ultimately comes down to the people delivering the work.
"One team. One vision."
The challenge, then, isn't simply becoming bigger.
It's becoming more capable, more connected and better equipped to create ambitious work without sacrificing the qualities that made the agency successful in the first place.
Joseph, Fulham Road, London
Why B_RD is joining the SDD Family
The launch of the SDD Family comes from a simple observation.
There is an extraordinary amount of creativity happening in physical retail and brand experience.
And much of it deserves far more attention.
Shop Drop Daily has spent years documenting that creativity, sharing projects from around the world and highlighting the ideas challenging what a store, pop-up or brand activation can be.
But alongside that work has come a growing appreciation for the agencies making it possible.
The creative studios developing new approaches to storytelling. The designers rethinking physical environments. The production specialists solving complex challenges. The people whose expertise turns an ambitious idea into something an audience can actually experience.
The SDD Family is about bringing those businesses closer together.
Not as another agency directory, and not simply as a collection of logos, but as a curated community built around insight, inspiration, collaboration and the shared ambition to keep pushing the industry forward.
B_RD's decision to become the first founding member represents an important starting point.
For Gabrielle, the connection felt natural because of the shared belief in creativity, collaboration and the value of the people working behind the scenes.
"We've always believed that this industry is built on incredible people, creativity and collaboration, so when the opportunity to become the first founding member of the SDD Family came along, it felt like a natural fit for B_RD."
But what stands out is that Gabrielle sees the opportunity as something more meaningful than additional exposure for the agency.
"For us, it's about more than visibility. It's about building a community that champions great work, encourages collaboration and creates opportunities for people and businesses to connect in meaningful ways."
That distinction is central to the SDD Family.
The ambition isn't simply to showcase agencies. It's to create stronger relationships across the industry, share ideas and expertise, and give the people behind exceptional work a greater voice.
Nathan sees that shared ambition as an important reason for B_RD's involvement.
"We know we are not alone in this industry and we very much respect what you have built with the SDD platform."
For him, being first was also a deliberate decision.
"It was very important for us that we were the first founding member."
Nathan hopes that commitment will encourage other agencies to join, helping to build a global creative community of respected collaborators.
He also sees the partnership as an opportunity to share expertise with the next generation of creatives.
"We are in this for the long haul and we want to share our expertise with the next generation of future creatives."
It's a perspective that aligns closely with what we want the SDD Family to become.
A community that doesn't just celebrate what has already been achieved, but helps create the conditions for more interesting work in the future.
Stephen is equally enthusiastic about the opportunity, although his explanation is characteristically more direct.
"Honestly, we'd have been mad not to join, and being number one on the list is just magic!"
But beyond the enthusiasm, his ambition for the partnership is clear.
It's about working more closely with Shop Drop Daily, creating opportunities for B_RD while also contributing its thinking, knowledge and perspective to the wider industry.
And that two-way relationship is important.
Being part of the SDD Family shouldn't simply tell the industry that an agency exists. It should help people understand why that agency matters.
With B_RD, that story is as much about its people, expertise and approach as it is about the projects in its portfolio.
Casablanca Paris, Global Activations
The future is still physical
It's difficult to have a conversation about the future of retail without eventually arriving at technology.
AI, automation, digital commerce and rapidly changing consumer expectations are reshaping how brands operate and how people interact with them.
And while those developments create enormous opportunities, they also raise some interesting questions about the role of physical space.
What should a store actually do now? Why should someone choose to visit an activation? And what can a brand create in the real world that can't be replicated through a screen?
For Stephen, the answer begins with a simple reminder.
"With technology evolution and AI continuing to steal most of the headlines, you could ask: does the real world still exist? Well, it does…and it's where B_RD and our industry play best!"
It's a sentiment that resonates strongly with the thinking behind Shop Drop Daily.
Physical retail isn't interesting because it is somehow resisting technological change.
It's interesting because its role is evolving.
The strongest physical spaces are becoming places for discovery, connection, culture, participation and storytelling. They're giving brands opportunities to create relationships that extend beyond a product or transaction.
And increasingly, the question isn't simply what a store or activation looks like.
It's what someone actually gets from being there.
Gabrielle believes physical experiences have the ability to offer something genuinely different, particularly as the ways people discover and connect with brands continue to evolve.
"Physical experiences have the power to offer something truly special: a chance to step inside a brand's world, engage with it on a deeper level and create memories that extend far beyond the experience itself."
For B_RD, that means continuing to explore new ways of combining storytelling, immersion, creativity and meaningful consumer connection.
The ambition isn't simply to create environments that look beautiful.
It's to create experiences with a purpose, that evoke emotion and leave a lasting impression.
And for Nathan, continuing to challenge established approaches is just as important.
He sees the agency's role as pushing boundaries, sharing expertise and questioning the status quo of physical retail.
That willingness to keep learning and experimenting feels especially relevant in an industry that is changing so quickly.
Because whatever retail looks like in the next decade, it's unlikely to stand still.
Acne Studios, Holiday Pop-Up, Dubai
The beginning of something bigger
Ten years after starting out in a coffee shop, B_RD has become an internationally recognised agency, developed long-standing relationships with major brands and been crowned Design Agency of the Year.
It's a significant achievement.
But perhaps what makes B_RD such a fitting first member of the SDD Family is that its story isn't simply one of growth or recognition.
It's about the importance of people, the value of collaboration, the relationship between creativity and craftsmanship, and the belief that there's always a better idea worth exploring.
Those are qualities we want to see reflected across the SDD Family.
Shop Drop Daily was founded on a belief that retail wasn't dying. It was changing, often in far more creative and exciting ways than the wider conversation gave it credit for.
The SDD Family takes that belief further.
It's an opportunity to get closer to the agencies responsible for that change, give greater visibility to the work and thinking shaping our industry, and build a community that inspires and challenges what comes next.
B_RD is our first founding member. And we couldn't be more excited to have them on board.
Welcome to the SDD Family.
About B_RD
B_RD is an international creative design and production agency established in 2016. Bringing creative strategy, design, technical development, production and installation together, the agency delivers retail environments, installations and brand experiences for global clients.
Awarded Design Agency of the Year at the Creative Retail Awards 2026, B_RD is the inaugural founding member of the SDD Family.
Learn more about B_RD:
About the SDD Family
The SDD Family is Shop Drop Daily's curated community of creative agencies shaping the future of physical retail and brand experience. Bringing together exceptional talent, expertise and ideas, it exists to give greater visibility to the people behind the work, build meaningful industry connections and inspire what brands do IRL.
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