How Arte built its in-house creative agency and cut costs by 50%

In 2024, Arte made a bold move: taking back control of its advertising creation by building an internal agency. A strategic shift driven by the desire to elevate Arte Studio, move beyond chronic dissatisfaction with traditional agencies, and strengthen the brand’s creative sovereignty.

Over the course of a year, we supported the teams through this transformation—from defining the operating model to producing the first 100% in-house campaigns. The result: a fully operational internal agency, 50% savings on creative budgets, and a stronger team—autonomous, committed, and empowered.

1. Why Arte chose to bring creative in-house

Arte wasn’t starting from scratch: with Arte Studio, the channel already had strong in-house creative resources (like many media brands). This sparked a broader question about expanding the studio’s scope of capabilities. With fewer than 10 key campaigns per year, relying on an agency on an annual retainer no longer felt fully fit for purpose.

1.1 Clear challenges

• Becoming more agile to produce more efficiently
• Reducing costs by optimizing existing resources
• Aligning brand strategy with creative execution

1.2 A drive for creative sovereignty

Rather than depending on external agencies with heavy, slow cycles, ARTE wanted to reclaim ownership of its campaign production—also a way to amplify its singularity from within.

2. A consulting + talent approach to make it happen

Over 12 months, we mobilized:

• A 3-person consulting team to lead the transformation
• Freelance talent from our community for targeted needs: creative direction, social media strategy, UX/UI design, advertising guidelines, etc.
• Our proprietary framework: the Modular Creative Model

2.1 The Modular Creative Model: our compass

It’s the framework we use to transform creative operating models. It brings together three dimensions:

• Program: aligning the editorial calendar, defining content programming and key moments
• People: mapping talent, creating the right roles, structuring teams
• Process: clarifying workflows, tools, and ways of working

3. A three-phase approach

Phase 1 — Strategic design: laying the foundations for the in-house agency

The first step was to understand how the organization worked—and where it could gain efficiency. We conducted an audit of internal creative capabilities to identify strengths, constraints, and opportunities.

In parallel, we:

• Defined the positioning and role of the future internal agency
• Worked with teams to formalize its key processes
• Co-built a project roadmap through to operational launch

Phase 2 — Build: strengthening the brand system & processes

1. The Brand OS: a living hub to bring the brand to life

We supported the creation of an online Brand OS—a centralized space to manage the brand day to day. Accessible to all teams, it brings together visual guidelines, tone of voice, templates, editorial principles, and more.

2. New advertising guidelines, new territory

Together with the ARTE teams, we reworked the advertising guidelines to better reflect the brand’s identity. This repositioning came to life through the “Ça vous change” campaign.

3. Rethinking processes and onboarding talent

On the organizational side, we:

• Redesigned the creative team org chart
• Built a freelance induction toolkit, so every new talent could quickly understand the ARTE universe and collaborate effectively
• Ran group coaching sessions to help in-house teams level up on creative execution and campaign leadership

Phase 3 — Run: supporting the first in-house campaigns

The final stretch: supporting ARTE in producing its first 100% in-house campaigns. We activated trusted freelance talent to help the teams take off—while providing strategic support as needed.

Result: campaigns imagined, briefed, and led directly by ARTE Studio. Fewer intermediaries, faster execution, and stronger consistency.

4. What we achieved together in 12 months

• 100% of campaigns produced in-house
• 50% savings vs. previous agency budgets
• 15 team members integrated into the in-house agency
• Teams trained, empowered, and autonomous
• Strategic and creative sovereignty regained

5. What we took away from this engagement

✅ Insourcing isn’t something you improvise—but it’s a powerful transformation lever.
✅ The right framework, the right tools, and a bit of courage can change everything.
✅ With a clear vision and the right partners, an internal agency can become a true strategic center of gravity.
✅ We’re proud to have helped ARTE reach this milestone.

Ready to choose creative sovereignty?

We support brands that want to take back control of their creative production.
Whether you’re starting from scratch or looking to structure an existing internal studio, we can help you build a robust, flexible, and inspiring in-house model.

Write us

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