How small agencies can scale national media buys without adding headcount
When Tim Glover launched his independent shop Pink Rebel Media in Detroit after two decades at a larger agency, he knew the model had to change. “You can’t go out and hire a ton of people,” he told attendees of a panel at Ad Age’s Small Agency Conference & Awards in Toronto, moderated by Ad Age Studio 30 editor John Dioso. “So, we were very selective with senior-level and mid-level folks—and then we knew we had to identify partners like Pathlabs and Continuum.”
That approach wasn’t just pragmatic—it was strategic. Glover designed Pink Rebel to lead with client strategy, creative and planning, then to hand off much of the complex, cross-channel execution to trusted specialists. The result: The boutique shop has successfully pitched and won media accounts in highly competitive categories like home improvement and automotive, thanks to support from the digital firepower of Pathlabs, a media execution partner, and the managed service linear TV exchange of Continuum Media.
“We wanted to be the thought leadership, the strategy side, the planning side of things,” Glover said. “Then we leverage our partners—not for 100% of the execution, but for some of it.”
A leaner model, a larger impact
That blended model is gaining traction at a time when small and independent agencies face mounting pressure to deliver cross-channel performance, without inflating budgets or adding headcount. In a landscape defined by fragmentation, platform complexity and client demand for measurable outcomes, execution is becoming both a bottleneck and an opportunity. These types of hybrid partnerships give smaller shops like Pink Rebel access to the scale, buying power and operational expertise of much bigger agencies.
And along the way, they’re shining a light on alternate paths for the advertising business.
“We consider ourselves a DSP for linear,” said panelist Jim Leary, executive VP of Continuum. “We felt the demand was in the market.” Continuum gives small agencies access to premium inventory and data-informed pricing that was once the exclusive domain of big holding companies. The model eliminates the challenges of traditional linear buying, replacing it with a data-powered exchange model that taps into years of pricing intelligence from its vast “data lake”—which Leary joked was “as big as the lake right outside this building.” (Lake Ontario, for those keeping track.)
The core idea is to streamline local, regional and national broadcast and cable buys through algorithmic optimization and centralized relationships with corporate media sellers. “The traditional RFP in linear TV is dead,” Leary said. “We’re able to execute with efficient pricing and through an efficient process.”
The company’s business model depends on those efficiencies. Continuum operates as a managed service without charging up-front fees. Instead, they collect a small margin on the total media spend, confident in their ability to deliver value at scale.
Execution power without the headcount
Speed, scale and simplicity in the media buying process were critical for Pink Rebel’s growth—but digital execution posed a different set of challenges. That’s where Pathlabs entered the picture.
Panelist Evan Ladensack, chief sales officer of Pathlabs, described his company as an extension partner that “removes the grunt work from digital”—an agile backend that allows agencies like Pink Rebel to deliver enterprise-grade media plans without having to build a full-service media department from scratch.
“We come in just as a partner and we really look from an agnostic approach how we can be successful with the team,” Ladensack said. “We are able to extend Pink Rebel’s reach through digital ecosystems and save Tim’s team time.”
It’s not traditional outsourcing—it’s more of an embedded partnership.
“I’ve never been one to use the term ‘vendor,’” Glover said. “It’s always been ‘partner.’ But now, it’s even more than that. It’s truly an extension of our team.”
The advantage of this model, Glover noted, is flexibility—both for clients and for internal teams. “Sometimes we’ll bring in Continuum and Pathlabs and say, ‘Here’s who we’re working with.’ And then sometimes it’s completely behind the scenes,” he said. “It depends on the client. The number one key thing is communication.”
That transparency is critical—especially when small agencies are concerned about losing control or compromising pricing integrity. Glover emphasized that Pink Rebel sets its own media pricing benchmarks using third-party tools like SQAD, ensuring fairness and competitiveness even when execution is outsourced.
“When you’re proactive and transparent about it, the clients believe they’re getting a much larger circle,” he said.
The model allows Pink Rebel to stay lean and profitable. “We didn’t want to build an agency with a bunch of different silos,” Glover said. “It’s very difficult to have profitability and make money right out of the hole that way.”
Leveling the playing field for indie agencies
Glover suggests this model could become a paradigm for small and independent agencies going forward: recruiting a senior team of strategic generalists, then plugging in support and expertise from partners as needed. “Think of yourself as a general contractor,” he said. “You need subcontractors with deep expertise, but your own team needs to be able to manage the whole project.”
Leary echoed that sentiment. “I once had a leak in my basement,” he said. “I tried to fix it myself. I made a mistake. I turned to the pros. Focus on what you do best—working with clients, developing strategy—and leave execution to those who live and breathe it.”
Beyond talent and technology, there’s another benefit to this model: negotiating power. Continuum aggregates millions of dollars in media spend, which lets them secure efficiencies that would be unavailable to a solo agency.
It’s all about leveling the playing field. “Fixed costs are a huge challenge for independent agencies,” said Ladensack. “Data, measurement, analytics—those things are expensive and they don’t always go to long-term gains on your business. But if we can centralize them across clients, everyone benefits.”
In a media environment where every dollar and data point counts, that kind of structural efficiency can be the difference between surviving and thriving.
“Agencies are more than a building and a name,” Glover said. “They’re the people—and the partners you choose.”
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