Apply Digital, a Vancouver-based digital products agency, announced today a growth investment from Los Angeles-based private equity firm Interlock Equity. While the terms of the deal are undisclosed, the fact that it’s a growth investment is fitting given the commitment to expansion within Apply.

The company was founded in 2016 by a pair of agency veterans in Chris Coghlan and Gautam Lohia, who first met as executives at local marketing agency Blast Radius in the early 2000s. Blast’s 2008 exit served as a catalyzing moment for Coghlan and Lohia—proof that they too could build a successful company.

They set out to do just that. Early sketches of that initial idea had both similarities and differences to Blast Radius, Lohia recalls. Both Apply and Blast Radius sought to amplify clients’ brand, yet Apply focuses on strategizing, building and promoting digital products. Think of carefully curated apps, websites and content management systems. This focus was to meet a rise in demand for digital products he and Coghlan saw towards the end of their Blast Radius tenure. “The world is productized and companies need help with productization,” Lohia says of the existential reasoning for Apply.

But as much as Lohia and Coghlan wanted to build products, they wanted to build a great culture. To Lohia, this facet is what makes Apply unique. “What we call a growth mindset means we focus on innovation, we focus on learning, everybody gets lots of opportunities,” Lohia explains. Further, Lohia and his team boxed their culture into the acronym SHAPE, which stands for smart, humble, active, positive and excellent. Smart means a consistent desire to learn. Humble and positive are attitude-based characteristics. Active relates to a propensity to problem solve. Excellent means super high quality.

“If you read about us online, if you go to Glassdoor, you'll see that it’s a really fun place to work. We don't mind failure, we just want people to learn and get better,” Lohia insists. “It certainly has helped us grow. We're able to hire people because they feel [our culture]. Our clients actually love that about us. Many of our clients actually tell us afterward, ‘You guys build great stuff, but it's your culture and how you guys work that we really love.’” 

Apply’s culture was highlighted as a key element in the growth investment, too. “Apply Digital’s exceptional growth trajectory is rooted in the ability to combine strategic thought leadership with innovation to deliver tangible, high-ROI solutions for global clients,” Stefan Jensen, managing director of Interlock, said in a release. “Gautam, Chris, and team have built Apply Digital with a keen focus on the Company’s core values. Together we will establish a global reach and expand the capability set while maintaining the Company’s unique culture as it scales.”

In addition to culture, Apply has grown through working with some major brands. The company’s current roster includes vaccine manufacturers Moderna, local gaming giant EA and food and beverage juggernaut Kraft Heinz. This was another early characteristic Lohia and Coghlan wanted to see in their company. “‘Let's build a business that really is modern and helps companies build digital products,” Lohia recalls. “The important thing is, though, let's not just focus on Vancouver, let's try to go for global brands. That was the impetus. It just kind of flowed from there.”

Growth is also evidenced within Apply through its personnel. The team now consists of 230 members in six offices around the world, including outposts in Amsterdam and Mexico City. Through it all, the team has stayed steadfast in its approach. “Our purpose has stayed the same—the dual purpose of product productizing and building digital transformations for big brands,” Lohia says.“The second purpose is really giving employees opportunities.”

As the company looks forward, Lohia and his colleagues are licking their lips over the possibilities today’s growth investment opens up. Acquisitions, new offices and an even larger team are all on the table. On the client-side, Apply will look to leverage its existing portfolio to grow opportunities within certain industries—leaning on its work with Moderna to expand its healthcare roster, for example. It looks like, over the next year, we’ll really see Apply take SHAPE. 

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