Young & Laramore Launches 'Here There Be Monsters'

Full service marketing agency Young & Laramore (Y&L) launched a division, Here There Be Monsters, to focus on digital and design work.

So what’s up with the name? “Here There Be Monsters refers to the warnings sea captains and mapmakers placed on old maps.

“We played literally off what map makers and sea captains put on old maps in unexplored areas,” said Bryan Judkins, one of Monster’s two managing directors. Likewise, the studio’s goal is to help brands navigate uncharted territories in design and digital work.

Tom Denari, president of Young & Laramore, expects the parent agency will learn from the smaller shop. “In some ways we also see Here There Be Monsters as a bit of research and development. They can push the boundaries for design and digital that we’re excited about,” he said.

Here There Be Monsters also plans to go after a new set of accounts Y&L might not be able to reach. “It’s more about the marketplace in terms of attacking specific brands that don’t need a full-service agency,” said Denari. “Here There Be Monsters could take on more of a subset. It could take on package design, the identity, a Web project, without having to displace the ad agency.”

Trevor Williams was named co-managing director; he and Judkins will continue to hold the roles of associate creative directors at Y&L. Four others from Y&L were brought on board Monsters; two will work in digital and two in design.

Here There Be Monsters will operate as its own agency with its own identity. The agency created a Web site, heretherebemonsters.com, using a Google Maps API (define) so visitors can look through the agency’s work — similar to looking for a street or landmark on a Google Map — instead of flipping through portfolio pages on a Web site.

Monsters shares clients Brizo, faucets, Ugly Mug Coffee, and Steak n’ Shake with Y&L. It has signed a local client, Indianapolis-based Nurture, a modern baby gear and apparel store. Here There Be Monsters expects to disclose additional digital clients in coming weeks.