SYDNEY, JULY 16, Cake.Shop, an ad tech startup founded by experienced industry executives, has launched with the aim of providing brands and agencies with programmatic ad buying services powered by transparency and rich media creative ad targeting. 

The company is founded by former AdLudio and Mindshare Australia programmatic executive Luke Hills, and former Azerion JAPAC Managing Director Georgia Woodburne.  Cake.Shop aims to give agencies and brands a trusted solution to help them tackle the biggest industry challenges: easy access to programmatic advertising, creative and measurement. 

"We're thrilled to introduce Cake Shop to the world," Hills said. "Our mission is to support agencies and brands in achieving sustainable growth both commercially and environmentally. We aim to make effective advertising more accessible for brands of all sizes."

The name "Cake.Shop" is inspired by the proverb "to have your cake and eat it," symbolising the company's commitment to providing the best of both worlds in media buying. The company said it is focused on disrupting the media buying process via a four-pronged approach: 

• Creative led: Attention-grabbing ads designed to engage people not annoy them. 
• Sustainable marketing: Measure, reduce and optimise to sustainable goals. 
• Technology ownership: Eliminate intermediaries for greater control and transparency over your marketing technology. 
• Commercial: Flexibility allows your business to grow sustainably.

Hills said that traditional managed service options are not working and agencies and brands need control over their technology choices and must work transparently with their partners. 

“Cake.Shop is designed to lower the barrier to entry, providing market-leading solutions that enable agencies to deliver world-class services to their clients,” Hills said. “By stepping into the gap left by larger technology  companies, Cake.Shop offers a local and global, client-focused alternative for businesses.

Hills is former VP of Growth at AdLudio in London, and was previously Head of Programmatic at Mindshare Australia. Woodburne was responsible for driving Azerion’s expansion in the JAPAC region, and played a key role  in rich media creative company Inskin's expansion in the Asia Pacific region, where she held the role of GM, APAC.

They said Cake.Shop would offer a different experience for brands and agencies seeking to secure a strong performance from programmatic ad spend. 

 "Our flexible approach means clients can reduce spending without the pressure of restrictive contracts,” Hills said.”We're possibly the only business in the market advocating for clients to spend less, focusing instead on quality, ownership, and transparency for long-term brand growth.” 

He added: “With significant headwinds in marketing through privacy, compliance and sustainability we believe legacy solutions in the market will struggle to meet the demands of local businesses. We're here to help companies navigate these pressures with solutions which compliment our sustainable vision.” 

Transparency is at the core of Cake.Shop's ethos. “We believe this should be reflected in fee structures and solutions,” said Woodburne.

About Cake Shop: 

Cake.Shop is an ad tech startup co-founded by Luke Hills and Georgia Woodburne, aiming to transform the media buying process with advanced technology. Cake.Shop provides solutions that prioritise sustainability, transparency, and control, helping brands and agencies achieve effective and responsible advertising. For more information, visit www.gocake.shop