How Instrument and Vanport Studio's Build Week Is Changing the Game for Local Portland Businesses

Instrument is launching Build Week, a high-impact, hackathon-style event designed to fuel the growth of local businesses through creativity and collaboration. By assembling a hand-picked team of strategists, designers, producers and writers from across the country, Instrument is breaking down traditional-agency client barriers to work face to face with two emerging companies, Funnr and Henderson Ave. Together, they’ll co-create tangible solutions that fuel business growth and bring visionary ideas to life.

Created in partnership with Vanport Studio, Build Week challenges the conventional agency model. Over just three days, Instrument will apply its expertise in branding, marketing, and product development to help two local businesses take major steps forward:

• ​Funnr: A web-based scheduling platform designed to help parents and guardians easily coordinate playdates for their children. The Build Week team will create a UI kit, a strong conceptual framework, and a scalable design template that founder Fresh Roberts can use to grow the platform.
• Henderson Ave: A new canned wine brand in need of a distinctive identity. Instrument will develop a visual language, brand identity, and foundational creative assets to help founder Tiquette Bramlett and Henderson Ave stand out in the competitive beverage market.

Laurel Burton, CEO of Instrument says, “Build Week is a focused sprint where we partner with Portland founders to unlock their business potential - fast. In just one week, we break barriers, sharpen strategies, and build what’s next. With the right minds and intent, real transformation happens. This is how we push founders forward - by investing our time, talent, and expertise to fuel lasting growth.” 

Leon Anderson, president of Instrument says, "We believe that we have a responsibility to support both our internal community at Instrument and the broader communities where we live and work. We're excited to work alongside Fresh Roberts and Tiquette Bramlett to transform their innovative ideas into tangible results, creating solutions that drive impact."

We are committed to bringing together creative talent and industry experts to co-create solutions and drive lasting growth for our city. 

The magic of Build Week isn’t just in the speed, it’s in the lasting impact. Last year, Build Week resulted in 30-page content and copy strategy documents, a 90+ day marketing campaign, animations, individual and global activations, a built-out microsite, a fully designed landing page, and more.