When you enter the offices of JOAN, there’s a sign reading: What would JOAN do? 

The answer is, “plenty.” Within the last year, the female-led agency has opened a production studio, finalized a proprietary diagnostic tool for clients marketing, hired a big-name creative leader in Dan Lucey from BBDO and notched $12 million in revenue. 

JOAN arrived there with some head-turning creative, including a refreshingly honest campaign for FiberOne Brownies that celebrated womens’ right to plastic surgery with over-the-top ads featuring exaggerated imagery like huge blown-up lips. The unapologetic video spots with “Real Housewives” stars dancing and singing about having work done surely did their work: Sales bested General Mills’ goal by 230 percent. 

The shop also shattered the status quo with “Womanikin,” a device it created to add breasts to CPR dummies, which are designed around men rather than women. Wrote JOAN in its entry: “The attachment allows people to learn how to administer CPR on female bodies in an educational setting and will help ensure that future generations have the confidence and information they need to provide potentially life-saving support in a moment of crisis – regardless of gender.”

—Judann Pollack