Best Branding Agencies in Zurich (2026)

Introduction

These eight Zurich branding agencies are the ones to shortlist in 2026 for brand strategy and identity work. They range from small owner-led studios in Kreis 4 and Wiedikon to MetaDesign’s Swiss office, which is part of Publicis Groupe, and they were chosen for recent work, current client rosters and recent recognition.

Zurich’s brand work follows its client base: banks and insurers, transport, tourism, industrial groups and a growing number of robotics and tech companies. Large Swiss clients often run formal, multi-stage pitches. In June 2026 MADE Identity won a five-year brand management mandate from SWISS after a two-stage international tender, and Scholtysik & Partner picked up both a Red Dot and an iF Design Award in 2025. Some familiar names have moved on, too. Branders now trades as dear creative.

Every agency here has a Zurich studio in 2026, confirmed on its own site or an official profile. The list covers strategy and identity specialists; multidisciplinary studios appear on our design agencies page. It runs in no fixed order, since the right choice depends on the brief, the scale of the rollout and how you like to work.

The best branding agencies in Zurich

1. dear creative (formerly Branders)

Sister company of AGOBAY · Altstadt · dearcreative.com

dear creative is the studio that was known as Branders, and it has worked from Zurich since 2005. Its head studio is on Fraumünsterstrasse, with a second studio in Lisbon. The work covers brand positioning, brand narratives and design across touchpoints, along with targeted use of AI in communication processes and campaign storylines.

Recent projects include a 2025 campaign and brand refresh for Sanitas, the repositioning of the Swiss lingerie brand Beldona, the “Be one of us” campaign for Porsche Schweiz and the launch of Chair Airlines. Clients who knew the studio as Branders will find older projects still linked from the new site.

2. MADE Identity

Independent · Kreis 4 · made-identity.ch

MADE Identity is a branding agency on Weberstrasse working across brand strategy, design and brand experience. It has had a strong 2026: in June it won a five-year strategic brand management mandate from SWISS after a two-stage international tender, and in October it won the Pro Juventute brand mandate after an agency evaluation.

The client list leans towards Swiss tourism and consumer names, including Schweiz Tourismus (for which it released a case film on the new brand world in July 2026), St. Moritz Tourismus, Victorinox, Helsana and LGT Capital Partners. It became lead branding agency for riposa in December 2025 and began a new brand for the Moon+Stars Festival the month before.

3. MetaDesign

Publicis Groupe · Altstadt · metadesign.com

MetaDesign is an international brand consultancy, and its Swiss office works from Stadelhoferstrasse under chairman Alexander Haldemann and Lukas Eiselin, CEO Switzerland. One of its largest Swiss projects was the 2022 Baloise rebrand, which brought all of the group’s companies and countries under one brand for the first time and was rolled out internally through management events, training and staff campaigns.

Clients named on its Zurich page include Vontobel, die Mobiliar, Swiss Life, Migros, Krebsliga and Lucerne Festival, with projects for the Tonhalle-Orchester Zürich, Climeworks, the Schweizer Paraplegiker-Gruppe and NZZ. Being part of Publicis Groupe means brand work can be connected to campaign and media teams in the same group, as happened on Baloise.

4. m&

Independent · Kreis 4 · m-und.ch

m& (m-und AG) works under the line “Creating value for brands and places”. It runs two practices: brand identity for companies, and property identity for places. Strategy, design and implementation come from one team, through a five-step process the agency calls Investigate, Strategize, Develop, Implement and Engage.

Recent work includes brand strategy, design, UX/CX and digital storytelling for purtel, positioning and a user concept for Die Mobiliar, and brand design and a website for the University of Zurich’s IPZ. The property identity practice makes it a sensible call for developers and site owners who need a brand for a place.

5. Scholtysik & Partner

Independent, partner-led · Altstadt · scholtysik.ch

Scholtysik & Partner was founded in Basel in 1996 by Carsten Scholtysik and opened its Zurich office, now on Hirschengraben, in the early 2000s. The partnership has grown since, including Lukas Staudenmann, formerly head of corporate identity at SBB. In 2025 it won a Red Dot for the ESCMID brand identity and an iF Design Award for the PSI rebrand.

Its client list is long and institutional: ETH Zurich, Swissgrid, SBB, Swiss Post, Bank Cler, Basler Kantonalbank, maxon and the publisher Kein & Aber. Recent work includes a full redesign of the Avenir Suisse brand identity and a new identity for Erich Keller. The agency also covers naming, brand portfolio strategy and audio branding.

6. Markenfels

Independent, owner-led · Oberstrass · markenfels.ch

Markenfels is a B2B and employer branding specialist founded in 2013, run by managing partners Gernot Honsel and Dr Ulrike Grein from Scheuchzerstrasse. Its work is organised as strategic consulting, strategic design and strategic activation, and it is a member of Leading Swiss Agencies.

The reference list is weighted towards industry. Markenfels has worked across several Siemens businesses (Siemens AG, Siemens Energy, Siemens Healthineers and a Siemens employer brand), on design evolution and brand experience for BOBST, and for Titlis. It suits engineering and industrial firms whose brand has to work with buyers, investors and recruits at once.

7. Salz & Water

Independent · Enge · salzandwater.com

Salz & Water is an independent brand and creative agency on Stockerstrasse that describes itself as multicultural with a global outlook. It covers strategy, creation and media, so one team can take an identity through to its launch campaign.

Clients include ABB, Givaudan, Sika, Endress+Hauser, FIFA and Swiss Steel Group, for which it produced the “Make steel matter” and “Keep on turning” work. A recent case for Geneva, Geneva Explore, shows its destination work. Clients who need only an identity system should say so early, since the agency’s default offer includes media.

8. distylerie

Independent · Wiedikon · distylerie.com

distylerie is a brand design agency founded in 2016, working from Zentralstrasse. It handles brand strategy, identity and design across digital, spatial and communication touchpoints, through a four-phase process from analysis to implementation. It won a Red Dot in 2024 for Twiliner, a European night bus brand designed to feel like a boutique hotel, and in 2023 for Eatrenalin.

Clients include Europa-Park, ANYbotics, Swisscom, Expliseat and the Robotics Institute Germany. The robotics and deep-tech work stands out, and the agency is a good fit for technical companies that need a brand people outside their field can follow.

What to look for in a Zurich branding agency

Decide how much strategy you need before you talk to anyone. Some agencies here lead with positioning, naming and brand architecture, while others are strongest once the strategy is settled and the job is a visual identity and its rollout. Ask to see strategy documents from past projects alongside the logos.

Swiss brands usually have to work in several languages, and often in German, French, Italian and English at once. Check that the agency has built identity systems, naming and tone of voice that hold up across languages, and ask who on the team writes copy in each one.

Expect a formal process from larger clients. SWISS ran a two-stage international tender for its brand mandate, and Pro Juventute an agency evaluation. Agree the evaluation criteria, the time each round takes and whether pitch work is paid before the first meeting. For smaller companies, a paid strategy workshop is a reasonable way to test the fit.

Look closely at rollout and governance. A new identity has to reach many touchpoints, from signage and reports to apps and staff templates, and that work often runs long after the launch. Ask how the agency hands over brand guidelines and master files, how feedback on design routes is collected, and how approvals are recorded, so the brand stays consistent after the launch team has moved on.

How Fabric helps branding agency teams

Fabric gives a branding team one workspace for strategy decks, identity files, client feedback and project knowledge, with AI search across all of it. The brand identity setup is built around how identity projects run: research and workshops first, then routes, refinement and rollout, with one space per client.

Logo masters, type files, image libraries and motion assets live in Fabric’s cloud drive, which streams files on demand, so they take no local disk space and the team always opens the latest version. Search works by meaning across documents, images and PDFs, and colour search finds assets by shade, which helps when checking a palette across past work. Early in a project, a canvas works as a moodboard, with references, Figma frames and video embedded side by side.

For review rounds, share a file or folder with the client as a commenter. Shared links work without sign-up, and clients can draw on an image and attach a comment to the drawing, highlight text in a strategy PDF, or leave timestamped comments on a brand film. The team marks each comment completed as it is handled, so a round of feedback works like a checklist. Threaded comments and roles keep the conversation with the right people.

When the identity is signed off, the brand guidelines folder can be published as a web page and updated by editing the source; there is more on this in using Fabric for brand guidelines. Published pages are view-only, with optional download, which suits a guidelines site for partners and suppliers. Password protection keeps pre-launch work private, and on Team plans self-writing docs maintain a page for each client covering decisions, deliverables and open items.

Password protection is included on Pro and Team plans, and self-writing docs on Team plans. See plans for teams.

Frequently asked questions

What is the best branding agency in Zurich?

It depends on the brief. On recent evidence, MADE Identity won the SWISS brand mandate through an international tender in 2026, Scholtysik & Partner won a Red Dot and an iF Design Award in 2025, and MetaDesign handles large Swiss brands such as Vontobel and Swiss Life.

What is the difference between a branding agency and a design agency?

Branding agencies focus on positioning, naming, brand architecture and identity systems, then guide the rollout. Design agencies cover a wider range of design work, from editorial and digital to spatial projects. Our list of design agencies in Zurich covers multidisciplinary studios.

What happened to Branders?

Branders now trades as dear creative. The studio still works from Zurich, with its head studio on Fraumünsterstrasse and a second studio in Lisbon, and older Branders projects are still linked from its site.

How do large Swiss companies choose a branding agency?

Most run a structured evaluation. SWISS used a two-stage international tender before awarding MADE Identity a five-year brand management mandate in 2026, and Pro Juventute chose the same agency after an agency evaluation. Smaller companies often start with a paid workshop instead.

Which Zurich branding agencies work with industrial and B2B companies?

Markenfels specialises in B2B and employer branding, with Siemens and BOBST among its clients. Salz & Water works for ABB, Sika and Swiss Steel Group, and distylerie has built brands for robotics companies such as ANYbotics.

Related lists

Branding agencies in other cities: New York · London · Los Angeles · Chicago · Toronto

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Run your branding studio on Fabric: Fabric for brand strategy teams · Fabric for agencies · Best design feedback tools