Studio Mura is a three-person design studio based in Amsterdam specializing in brand identity and campaign work. In early 2024, facing increasing client questions about AI and pricing pressure from cheaper generalists, they made a deliberate decision to reposition — not to compete on AI execution, but to own AI direction.
What Changed
They stopped billing hourly for execution and introduced three new service packages. Brand Discovery (€4,500): a strategic workshop and positioning brief that they used to give away as part of broader projects. AI-Directed Brand Identity (€12,000–18,000): full brand development using AI tools for ideation and iteration, with a human CD directing every decision. Brand Direction Retainer (€2,800/month): ongoing creative direction for clients who needed consistent strategic output without production capacity.
The Revenue Effect
Revenue went from £420K in 2023 to £600K in 2024 — a 43% increase. More significantly, the revenue composition changed: 60% now comes from retainer and strategy work versus 15% previously. The team works fewer late nights, turns down execution-only work, and bills at higher effective hourly rates than before AI became a conversation topic.
What They Would Do Differently
“We should have raised our minimum engagement size faster.” The first six months were spent on $5,000 projects that could have been $10,000 projects with more confident positioning. The transition period cost more in underpriced work than it did in client acquisition.