The Middle East’s creative industry is at an inflection point. Over the past decade, brands active in the market have multiplied and/or grown, and the media landscape has become noisier than ever. Yet in conversations with clients, peers, and even competitors, one theme repeats: agencies are not keeping up. Client servicing is so-so. Creative output is same-same. The region doesn’t need more agencies. It needs different ones.
In my opinion, the current model is tired. Global networks often dominate through scale, but that scale comes at a cost: slower turnaround times, rigid processes, and work that can feel disconnected from the region’s culture. On the other side, smaller boutique agencies bring energy and originality but struggle with consistency or the resources to scale. Clients are left choosing between size and agility, depth and daring. Too often, they don’t get both.
It’s here, in this gap, that Good Juju was born. We’ve built a team with a cosmopolitan blend of third-culture perspectives and international talent. We are a true reflection of the modern GCC. And because we’re independent, we can take risks and have fun.
Across the region, lifestyle has become the new luxury. Saudi Arabia is reinventing entertainment and hospitality at pace. The UAE has exported its F&B and fashion culture to a global stage. Qatar and Bahrain are investing heavily in design, tourism, and wellness. Lifestyle brands are no longer side players, they are leading the conversation about what modern Middle Eastern identity looks like. These brands don’t just want to be seen; they want to be felt. They need campaigns that move people, create culture, and spark desire. And that requires agencies who live and breathe design, understand cultural nuance, and are bold enough to rewrite the rulebook.
Good Juju was built out of Umami Comms, the core team behind some of the region’s most culturally resonant hospitality campaigns. For years, our team of 40+ has delivered stellar work for iconic names such as Johnnie Walker, La Petite Maison, Pickl, bkry, Tashas, Bvlgari hotel and Honeycomb Hi-Fi. But within that success, a younger group of creatives wanted more. They weren’t content to watch the brands they admired in other sectors go elsewhere. They wanted to step up, claim that space, and create desire across categories from tech and apparel to automotive and e-sports. With Good Juju, we are not just the “restaurant guys” anymore.
Our creative work, content production, and branding under the Umami umbrella have consistently been among the best in the market, and we wanted to branch out into a broader set of industries, not just hospitality. For example, our recent Deja Vu menu concept with LPM stands as one of the strongest examples of creative work in the F&B business, evidence that we’re ready for more diverse briefs. Umami will stay laser-focused on hospitality, but the Good Juju vertical allows us to widen the lens. The two will be foils for each other, distinct yet complementary.
This ambition required a new structure. That spirit of intrapreneurship is what led to Good Juju. It is not a spin-off or an afterthought. It is a deliberate act: a new agency vertical designed by the team, for the team, to challenge the status quo and go toe-to-toe with bigger players. While the big sister Umami has form, the Good Juju team can embrace a “Big-Little Agency” mentality which is big in resources, ambition, and creativity, but little in ego, red tape, and unnecessary filler.
Our difference lies not in what we do, but in how we do it. For us, design is not cosmetic, it is cultural. It shapes how people interact with brands and how brands embed themselves in daily life. Good Juju is more than a name, it’s a philosophy, a movement. We believe that positive energy creates stronger partnerships, better work, and more resonant campaigns. Every relationship is built on optimism and clarity.
The Middle East doesn’t need more of the same. It doesn’t need another agency competing in the same field. What it needs are creative partners who can keep pace with the region’s cultural evolution, a focus on service with a positive attitude. Good Juju exists to fill that space. We are here for brands that are bold, design-forward, and unwilling to settle for safe. We are here to bring fresh energy into industries that thrive on cultural connection, whether that’s fashion, apparel, tech, wellness, or e-sports. And we are here to prove that big ideas don’t belong only to big agencies.
In short: the region didn’t need another agency. It needed a different one. We’re here for it. It’s Good Juju.
