The new KABU® studio was founded by Adam Kieres and Bartek Urbanke.
They’ve known each other for over 15 years and started their first company while still in college. Since then, they’ve gained experience working with some of the biggest players in the Polish advertising and marketing industry — and eventually brought their combined expertise together to create KABU.
They often say they’re similar, yet their differences are immediately noticeable:
Adam radiates energy — expressive, animated, emotionally engaged. Bartek is precise — calm, analytical, and deliberate with every word. Together, they form a perfectly balanced team, and a truly exceptional studio.
Where did the name KABU come from?
AK: You know where it comes from! It’s our initials!
BU: It’s also a nod to the tradition of naming businesses after their founders. We wanted something that would belong to us completely — something we could own and build upon.
AK: And then we noticed the connection to Kabuki — the Japanese art form that blends spoken word, music, costume, movement, makeup, and set design into bold, expressive performances.
That eclectic, multi-dimensional spirit really reflects our approach to branding.
What do you want to build with KABU?
AK: At its core, we’re a branding consultancy. We work to uncover the character of a brand and express it in its most meaningful form. Our tools are strategy, structure, business thinking, and process. Eighty percent of our work happens in our heads — the remaining twenty is execution at the computer.
BU: We both have a wide range of experience. With KABU, we bring together strategic marketing and design — and that’s our strength. We help growth-focused businesses create brands with clarity and impact.
AK: We’ve developed a unique and logical working process that consistently delivers — no matter the challenge.
BU: We call it the Brand Development Framework — a multidimensional approach to building brands. It’s grounded in strategy, in-depth analysis, and deep understanding of the market and consumer. We unlock the emotional potential of products. A brand’s idea should go beyond the product itself — it should express the vision of the entire organization. That’s what builds reputation and drives value.
You clearly have the talent — but how do you convince others of it?
BU: What sets us apart is that we operate beyond the usual categories.
We’re not just strategic, or just creative, or just design-focused.
We draw from all those worlds — and we connect the dots like no one else.
AK: We deliver the level of service and quality expected by the biggest corporations — but we make it accessible to anyone who wants to build something exceptional.
BU: We love working directly with business owners — the people who want to shift their perspective and take their brand to the next level. We share knowledge, spark ambition, and think together.
AK: We build open, trusted relationships with our clients. We often give far more than expected — treating their companies as if we were invested in them ourselves.
And we bring real business experience to the table — we understand packaging, print, website development, and marketing from the inside.
It sounds like you already have a loyal client base.
BU: Around 80% of our clients stay with us long-term. While a single project may take several months, our collaborations often last for years. KABU is still young, but our joint work has deeper roots.
AK: We've worked for major brands — Polish and international. Pepsi, Pepco, Kruszwica, Żywiec, Mercedes-Benz, Profi — the list is long.
BU: Now, we’re combining that experience and applying it to new terrain.
Big brands spend years building themselves — crafting philosophies, shaping identities. Do smaller companies think that way, too?
BU: Often, they think they just need a logo. Or packaging. Or advertising.
But they don’t realize these things are outcomes of a well-constructed brand and product offering.
AK: A brand’s positioning — and the emotional core of the brand — matters far more than the visuals. People choose with their hearts. Values and personality are what make a product stand out among dozens of similar ones.
BU: That’s why we work from the ground up. We help shape the product so that it offers something more. Many of our clients are experts in production, operations, or finance — but they haven’t yet seen the emotional value within their product.
AK: We often work with companies that have been around for decades. Things were fine — until they hit a wall. They don’t know how to evolve. They don’t know how to adapt to a world where TikTok sets trends and you can sell products without even having a physical store.
Is it easy to work with someone who has dedicated their whole life to their company?
AK: Sometimes the brief changes, or we move away from what we originally agreed upon — it happens. But most of the time, those detours lead right back to the strategy we built. The process we follow is deeply considered and highly refined.
BU: We’re genuinely focused on collaboration and dialogue. We become part of our client’s team. We look for people who enjoy creating together — not just handing over tasks.
Is conversation really that important?
BU: KABU was founded as a space for sharing knowledge. Not just with clients — but with our team, collaborators, and partners. We made a conscious decision to leave behind the mindset that you have to figure everything out alone just because you're working.
So, is there more to KABU than just the two of you?
AK: Definitely. We work with designers, copywriters, animators, developers, filmmakers — a whole ecosystem of talented people. We build flexible teams that can deliver any project with us.
BU: We create complete projects — not just pieces. Unlike traditional agencies that operate within narrow scopes or predefined briefs, we deliver comprehensive brand experiences. It’s not about task execution.
It’s about unlocking human potential to deliver the best possible outcome.
Alright, classic interview question: Where do you see yourselves in five years?
AK: Definitely not here! (laughs and points to the office) We’re already outgrowing this space — probably by the end of the year.
BU: We see ourselves working both in Poland and internationally. We’ve built a well-structured process for brand creation, project flow, and team organization — and that knowledge can be scaled globally.
We want to work with clients who are searching for their identity — people who understand that a brand can be the foundation of a successful business. KABU will be part of many new success stories. We want to become unmistakably known as the place you go when you’re ready to build a strong brand.
