About the Agency
Your partners in crime, but the crime is solving problems.
We believe the people who make the most interesting things often have the hardest time telling the world about them.
We’re not an ad agency, but we can make ads. We’re not a production house, but we can make your short film. We’re not real detectives, but we care deeply about solving problems, looking for clues, and finding the truth. And, we only work with a small number of clients at a time so we can actually give a damn.
Our approach is simple: investigate. We don’t come in with answers, we come in with questions. We dig into who you are, what you make, who you serve, where you drink your coffee, what kind of music do you listen to while you’re sewing pockets on that dress, and why it all matters. The solutions we uncover might be a brand, a campaign, a website, a pop-up… we don’t know yet, and that’s the point.
We believe the best creative work comes from understanding, not assuming. That’s why every case starts with curiosity and ends with a verdict.
Detective Agency is based in Chicago, IL and the dark figures behind the desk are Levi Bethune and Alaina Harkins.
Levi Bethune
Partner & Creative Director
Creative director and strategist with a background in storytelling, creative systems, and solving problems that don’t have obvious answers. Levi believes that the best solutions come from asking better questions.
Alaina Harkins
Partner & Art Director
Alaina brings an intuition and whimsy to the creative process that technology tried to kill ages ago, and is now obsessed with trying to replicate. But AI could never do what Alaina does.
What We Do
Every case is different.
We don’t sell packages. We listen, investigate, and build a plan around what you actually need.
Discovery & Research
Before we solve anything, we need to understand it. We dig into who you are, what you make, who cares about it, and what's actually standing in your way.
- Deep-dive interviews
- Audience & landscape research
- Problem definition
- Opportunity mapping
Brand & Identity
If the investigation reveals that your identity needs work, we'll build it — from positioning and voice to visual direction. But only if that's what the problem calls for.
- Positioning & messaging
- Visual identity direction
- Voice & tone development
- Brand architecture
Creative Strategy
A clear-eyed plan for what to do next. The answer might be a campaign, a product pivot, a website, a conversation with your customers — we follow the evidence.
- Strategic roadmapping
- Creative direction
- Content & channel planning
- Launch frameworks
Creative Consulting
Sometimes you just need someone to think through the problem with you. No deliverables, no decks — just focused, honest thinking about what's in front of you.
- Working sessions
- Creative reviews
- Problem-solving workshops
- Second opinions
Production & Execution
When the plan calls for making things, we make them. Photography direction, copywriting, design, digital builds — whatever the case requires.
- Art direction
- Copywriting & messaging
- Design & visual production
- Web & digital builds