Best Brand Design Agency

Ranked #4 of 14 for best brand design agency

Lippincott review

A New York brand consultancy, founded in 1943 and owned by Oliver Wyman, that names and designs brands for large companies such as Delta, Walmart and Kenvue.

Updated By the Best Brand Design Agency deskHow we scoreDisclosure

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Verdict

8.0/10

Pick Lippincott if you run a large company facing a merger, spin-off, rename or full rebrand and want naming, strategy, design and rollout from one consultancy with 80 years of corporate identity work.

Best for Enterprise rebrands and naming

Skip it if you want a fixed price or a small, fast identity project; Lippincott publishes no prices, and its own FAQ says the world's biggest businesses call on it for their most complex branding challenges 1.

Visit Lippincott (opens the Lippincott website)

Lippincott at a glance
Founded19431
Headquarters499 Park Avenue, New York2
OwnershipPart of Oliver Wyman, a Marsh business3
OfficesNew York, San Francisco, London, Dubai, Sydney, Singapore, Hong Kong, Shanghai and Seoul1
Chief executiveMichael D'Esopo4
Published prices or minimum budgetNo prices on its own site, and the inquiry form asks for name, work email, company, location and business needs, with no budget field; its Clutch profile lists a $5,000+ minimum project size 56
Recent acquisitionAthletics, a New York brand and innovation studio; the deal closed on November 2, 20263
Published case studies63 on the Our Work page (counted November 9, 2026)7

How Lippincott scores

Score breakdown for Lippincott
Body of work 30%8.5The Our Work page holds 63 case studies 7. They include the Delta red symbol and supergraphic 8, the Walmart Spark logo and its "Save money. Live better." tagline 9, the Southwest Airlines heart 10, the Starbucks Siren without its banner 11 and the Korean Air identity and livery that debuted in March 2025 12. The client list leans to large companies in finance, healthcare, manufacturing, technology and consumer products 1; cultural work such as NYC Pride, PBS and The New York Historical is a small share 7.
Recognition 20%7.5Recent wins appear in the official archives: a Red Dot Best of the Best for the Bombardier identity in 2024 13, Best Overall Visual Identity plus two Golds for Bank of America at the 2025 Transform Awards North America 14, the Best Brand Experience Diamond for Nokia at Transform's 2025 Diamond Awards 15, Gold for the Qnity identity at Transform Awards North America 2026 16 and Gold for NHC at Transform MEA 2026 17. Most of these awards come from Transform, a magazine and awards program for rebranding 14, with Brand Impact and iF entries alongside 18 19.
Strategy depth 15%9.5Lippincott sits inside Oliver Wyman, a management consultancy 1, and runs dedicated naming and brand voice practices 20 21. For the Kenvue name it generated over 12,000 names, ran 2,000 legal checks and screened candidates in 89 languages 22. It reports corporate branding work on four of the five largest mergers of all time 23, made the case for the single Marsh masterbrand 24 and measures brands with its own Brand Aperture tools 1.
Access and fit 15%6.5The FAQ says the world's biggest businesses call on Lippincott for their most complex branding challenges, and the contact page addresses CMOs and marketing leaders 1 25. It also says it works with startups and does pro bono work 1, and the case studies include founder-led Gumption Coffee and Huru, a banking app built for an entrepreneur 26 27. Its own site publishes no budget, minimum or timeline, and the inquiry form has no budget field 6; its Clutch profile lists a $5,000+ minimum project size 5. Starting is clear: a Work with us form and eight named regional contacts with phone numbers 28 25.
Range of delivery 10%9.0The Reimagine Experiences practice lists motion, video and interaction design, solutions architecture and an Innovation Lab for AR, VR, IoT and 3D printing 29. Case studies show a full app build for Huru, from interface design to technical implementation 27, Walmart's headquarters, store floor plans and signage 9, Southwest livery and snack packaging 10 and a guideline library for Danaher 30. The Athletics acquisition, closed November 2, 2026, adds digital, motion and creative technology expertise 3. Some launch work goes to partners: PriestmanGoode designed the Korean Air cabins and Dalton Maag co-created its fonts 12.
Transparency 10%6.5The site publishes 63 case studies 7, 33 of them with dated award lists, many linked to the award organizers' pages 31. It names 31 leaders and partners with their titles 4 and states its ownership 3. Its site publishes no prices, budgets or project timelines, and the process page describes an approach in general terms with no project steps 32.

Strengths and weak spots

Strengths

  • Naming is a dedicated practice with its own Head of Naming 4, and the Kenvue project screened candidate names in 89 languages 22.
  • Deep merger and spin-off experience: it reports corporate branding work on four of the five largest mergers of all time 23 and built the name and identity for DuPont's electronics spin-off Qnity 33.
  • Strategy, design, digital build and employee rollout come from one firm 29 9 33, backed by Oliver Wyman's industry, risk and operations expertise 1.
  • Recent work wins top prizes: a Red Dot Best of the Best for Bombardier in 2024 13 and Best Overall Visual Identity for Bank of America at Transform Awards North America 2025 14.
  • Nine offices on four continents, with named regional contacts and direct phone numbers on the contact page 1 25.

Weak spots

  • No prices, budget field or timelines on its own site, so the cost of a full program stays unknown until a proposal; the one published floor is the $5,000+ minimum project size on its Clutch profile 6 5.
  • Built for large companies: the contact page speaks to CMOs and marketing leaders, and the FAQ says the world's biggest businesses call on it 25 1.
  • Group-owned: Lippincott belongs to Oliver Wyman, a Marsh business 3, and Oliver Wyman's CEO has stated the goal of connecting Lippincott more closely with the rest of Oliver Wyman 34.
  • Some launch work goes to partners: PriestmanGoode designed the Korean Air cabins 12, and the creative agency Nexus made the Humane World for Animals launch spot 35.

Alternatives to Lippincott

Lippincott: common questions

How much does Lippincott charge?

Lippincott publishes no prices, day rates or minimum budget on its own site 28. Its Clutch profile lists a $5,000+ minimum project size 5. Projects start with a Work with us form that asks for your company, location and business needs, with no budget field 6, or through one of eight regional contacts listed with phone numbers 25.

Who owns Lippincott?

Lippincott is part of Oliver Wyman, a Marsh business 3, and the Lippincott trademark is registered to Oliver Wyman 36. Marsh, which operated for decades as Marsh & McLennan Companies, moved its businesses under the single Marsh name on Lippincott's recommendation 24.

Does Lippincott work with startups?

Lippincott says it partners with emerging businesses and startups beyond its enterprise clients, and does pro bono work for advocacy groups and cultural institutions 1. Its case studies include Gumption Coffee, a coffee company with Australian roots whose Manhattan flagship opened in October 2020, and Huru, a banking app for unbanked workers in the UAE founded by an entrepreneur 26 27. It publishes no startup package or price 28.

Sources

  1. Lippincott. About Lippincott | A leading brand, experience, and marketing consultancy. Checked 9 Nov 2026.
  2. Lippincott. New York office. Checked 9 Nov 2026.
  3. Lippincott. Lippincott completes acquisition of Athletics (press release, November 2, 2026). Checked 9 Nov 2026.
  4. Lippincott. Our People. Checked 9 Nov 2026.
  5. Clutch. Lippincott Reviews (2), Pricing, Services & Verified Ratings. Checked 9 Nov 2026.
  6. Lippincott. Work with us inquiry form (embedded on lippincott.com/get-in-touch/work-with-us/). Checked 9 Nov 2026.
  7. Lippincott. Our Work. Checked 9 Nov 2026.
  8. Lippincott. Delta case study. Checked 9 Nov 2026.
  9. Lippincott. Walmart case study. Checked 9 Nov 2026.
  10. Lippincott. Southwest Airlines case study. Checked 9 Nov 2026.
  11. Lippincott. Starbucks case study. Checked 9 Nov 2026.
  12. Lippincott. Korean Air case study. Checked 9 Nov 2026.
  13. Red Dot GmbH & Co. KG. Red Dot Design Award: Bombardier (Brands & Communication Design 2024, Corporate Identity Relaunch). Checked 9 Nov 2026.
  14. Transform magazine. 2025 Transform Awards NA: past winners. Checked 9 Nov 2026.
  15. Transform magazine. Transform proud to announce winners at inaugural Diamond Awards. Checked 9 Nov 2026.
  16. Transform magazine. 2026 Transform Awards NA: past winners. Checked 9 Nov 2026.
  17. Transform magazine. Transform proudly announces MEA 2026 winners. Checked 9 Nov 2026.
  18. Creative Bloq (organiser of the Brand Impact Awards). Brand Impact Awards 2025: all the winners revealed. Checked 9 Nov 2026.
  19. iF International Forum Design GmbH. iF Design: Nokia at Mobile World Congress. Checked 9 Nov 2026.
  20. Lippincott. Brand Naming. Checked 9 Nov 2026.
  21. Lippincott. Brand Voice. Checked 9 Nov 2026.
  22. Lippincott. Kenvue case study. Checked 9 Nov 2026.
  23. Lippincott. Build and Revitalize Brands. Checked 9 Nov 2026.
  24. Lippincott. Marsh case study. Checked 9 Nov 2026.
  25. Lippincott. Get in Touch | Lippincott, a leading brand, marketing and experience consultancy. Checked 9 Nov 2026.
  26. Lippincott. Gumption Coffee case study. Checked 9 Nov 2026.
  27. Lippincott. Huru case study. Checked 9 Nov 2026.
  28. Lippincott. Work with us. Checked 9 Nov 2026.
  29. Lippincott. Reimagine Experiences. Checked 9 Nov 2026.
  30. Lippincott. Danaher case study. Checked 9 Nov 2026.
  31. Lippincott. Bombardier case study. Checked 9 Nov 2026.
  32. Lippincott. See your challenges differently. Checked 9 Nov 2026.
  33. Lippincott. Qnity case study. Checked 9 Nov 2026.
  34. Lippincott. Press Release: Lippincott CEO (May 9, 2024). Checked 9 Nov 2026.
  35. Lippincott. Humane World for Animals case study. Checked 9 Nov 2026.
  36. Lippincott. Terms of Use. Checked 9 Nov 2026.