“We keep the buzzwords to a minimum, and the intentionality to a maximum.”

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That’s the philosophy at Louisville, Ky.-based Nimbus, an agency owned by a Black husband and wife team, whose self-described “secret sauce” is translating the relationship between culture and brands.

As the multicultural agency for Papa John’s—which in recent years suffered a reputation blow after an alleged racist comment by its now-departed founder—Nimbus has been part of the marketer’s comeback story. Last year, it worked with the pizza purveyor on design changes and a shift in messaging toward the company’s people and products, all adopted with a new lightheartedness. To promote the brand’s Cheeseburger Pizza and & Papadia, it linked with hip hop artist Jack Harlow and his song “What’s Poppin.”

In honor of Hispanic Heritage Month, Nimbus employed influencers to highlight the contributions made by Hispanics and Latinos to society on behalf of Jack Daniel’s Apple. It created a video series featuring Amara La Negra, a singer, actress, dancer and author who is known for social justice causes that featured Hispanic influences on music, culture, food and art. And for Gentleman Jack, Nimbus created “Culture Shakers” a beautifully filmed series highlighting multicultural bartenders and the stories of how they are crafting culture. 

Nimbus knows success doesn’t come easily. As a Black-owned shop, Nimbus says it has had to “manufacture a value that goes above and beyond in order to have a seat at a table that hasn’t always been kind.” So while most agencies give 100%, Nimbus says it gives 110%.