At Birthday, There’s Always a Reason to Celebrate
‘Born in New York, Comfortable Anywhere’ is the mantra behind the New York creative collective, Birthday. Founded in May 2024 by Corinna Falusi, former partner and chief creative officer of Mother New York and Ogilvy & Mather New York, in partnership with Jamie Standen and Erik Norin, the collective was established to disrupt the traditional agency model and act as an extension of a brand’s in-house team to bolster creativity and solve problems proactively.
Collaborating with “the people at the heart of a brand”, at just nine months old, Birthday has already worked with clients including Mercy for Animals at Climate Week NYC and Hinge, showcasing its versatility and ability to work with different brands catering to their unique needs.
Describing the collective as “anti-process”, Birthday considers itself a true creative partner. Combining external expertise from its team of independent creatives, strategists, and producers with the detailed knowledge and understanding of in-house brand teams, the process forgoes the “extra baggage” of a traditional agency model and prioritises work that stands out and resonates whilst being creatively sustainable.
To find out more about the collective’s journey so far, and “the magic that happens when the right people come together”, LBB caught up with Corinna.
LBB> Corinna, thanks for taking the time to speak with us. To begin, what have been some of your highlights from Birthday's story so far?
Corinna> We’re only nine months old, and everything still feels like yesterday. We quickly went from “Shall we do this?”, to shooting our first global campaign in Stockholm—and we haven’t stopped since.
Some highlights that come to mind: winning our first pitch against traditional agency networks; throwing 100 freelancers the holiday party they deserve; being closer than ever to the creative work—and to our clients. And always having an excuse to buy cake.
Of course, the biggest highlight of all: it’s working. When we launched Birthday, we were excited to start a creative collective that would operate in a different, unlayered, and more creatively sustainable way.
LBB> When you spoke to LBB a couple of years ago, you said that "The issue is the process. How do you get that idea out into the world, still intact?" Does Birthday's model help you navigate that journey and, if so, how?
Corinna> Absolutely. Birthday is anti-process in a sense. We reject the wasteful, time-consuming layers often found in traditional systems. Our way is more sustainable because our team—made up of independent creatives, strategists, and producers—is constantly evolving, tailored precisely to each brand, brief, and creative opportunity. This allows us to scale up for clients like Hinge and Allianz while remaining accessible to NGOs and start-ups.
When it comes to the journey of an idea, the biggest obstacles often come from the system itself. We don’t have those systems. We don’t have an internal hierarchy. We work directly with decision-makers. The foundation of every relationship is a shared ambition to create something great—and in that regard, we have the best clients.
We also have the privilege of being invited behind the scenes. Calling yourself a true partner to brands is a cliché in advertising, but when you work alongside clients at the very heart of their business, the difference is undeniable. With Birthday, it’s no longer us and them—there’s only us.
Take our work with Hinge, for example. They protect the idea as much as we do. Every idea feels collective, shared. And that’s what makes the best ideas.
Above, Hinge, 'The Moment I Knew'
LBB> Mergers of huge companies are becoming regular news in the industry. What do you think that says about the health of the traditional industry model – and do you consciously think about Birthday as something that stands in opposition to that trend?
Corinna> I’m not surprised that the traditional model is re-evaluating itself—so many of our clients say they don’t want to work with an agency anymore. But agencies generate ideas, just like Birthday does. So what is it that clients are rejecting? It’s all the extra baggage—layers, process, and inefficiency.
This is an exciting time for free-spirited, independent creatives and collectives. We chose our name because, at our core, we’re optimists. We believe in people, in ideas, and in the magic that happens when the right people come together.
LBB> How do you articulate the benefit of bringing external perspectives to in-house creative teams?
Corinna> It’s funny to think back to hearing the term at agencies: “We have to sell the idea.” That phrase alone reveals the problem—misalignment and mistrust from the start. Too often, there’s an arrogance in agencies, a belief that they know better than in-house teams or brand departments. But that’s not true, and it’s not what in-house teams need.
The people at the heart of a brand—from CMOs to in-house teams—know their brand better than anyone. They have deep, firsthand knowledge, built from the inside out. What they need isn’t someone telling them what to do, but a partner who brings a valuable external perspective. Someone who sits beside them, not across from them. Someone who helps shape a collective vision—without agendas.
LBB> When it comes to the kind of creatives that you're looking to add to the Birthday Collective, what sort of skills or experience are you looking for?
Corinna> Our motto—no layers, no politics, no nonsense—applies to our side of the equation too. In our model, every role is critical because there’s no excess, no wasted effort. If you’re working on a Birthday project, you know you’re playing an instrumental role.
I guess that’s the kind of creative we’re looking for.
LBB> We're speaking at a time when AI seems to be the biggest topic in the industry. To what extent do you use the technology in your work, and does the conversation around AI leave you feeling broadly excited, or broadly concerned?
Corinna> AI is, of course, omnipresent in what we do. We’re curious and excited about its potential to augment creativity—yes, AI tools assist our creatives and ideas. But creativity itself is not just a tool. Human ideas will always be the foundation of everything we do.
In a way, AI-generated creativity will be amazing—because it will push us to make our creativity even more human.
LBB> Finally, the last time we spoke you told us that the gift of a chainsaw 'changed your life'. Can we ask how – and is it still as important to this day?!
Corinna> The chainsaw was about a moment in my life when I needed to change everything—to cut things up. It was the perfect tool for breaking free, for letting go of restrictions. The ultimate liberation.
Now, years later, I’ve graduated to being a sausage maker. It’s less about destruction and more about creation—about making something others can enjoy, too.
