Junior and Cru merge to form JuniorCru signalling desire for expansion

Queensland creative agency Junior and its digital agency partner Cru have officially merged, rebranding as JuniorCru and eyeing expansion beyond its Brisbane base.

The merger sees the agency combining creative, strategy and technology services, with 62 full time staff, with Junior’s Russ Vine taking on the managing director role  and co-founder title with Cru’s general manager Ben Stokes taking a co-founder title and director of innovation position.

Vine also revealed the agency is now looking beyond its traditional Queensland home for clients, and said Junior had been working with Japanese clothes retailer Uniqlo, which recently launched its first Australian store in Melbourne, for the past 18-month as its creative agency.

The two agencies first started working together in February 2013 when Junior acquired a stake in Cru.