Business
Class
Created in partnership with American Express
A hosted travel series on Amazon Prime that helps small business owners feel inspired, empowered, and connected.
AT-A-GLANCE
WHAT WE DID
Development
Story Hunting
Showrunning
Direction
Production
Post Production
Global Documentary Series
Hosted by Suneel Gupta
David Chang
Ben & Jerry
Issa Rae
PROJECT OVERVIEW
American Express wanted to strengthen its connection with small business owners, and needed a compelling way to position themselves as a trusted partner in the entrepreneurial journey.
We came on board to develop, produce, and launch Business Class, a hosted travel series that treated entrepreneurship with the same cinematic care and storytelling depth usually reserved for food or travel shows, combining premium production value with powerful business stories.
A BESPOKE TEAM
To create a series that would be as entertaining as it was engaging and educational, we built an elite creative team that integrated branded content creators with prestige documentary series veterans hailing from Netflix’s Chef’s Table and Somebody Feed Phil.
With entrepreneur, author, and Harvard Innovation professor Suneel Gupta served as our host, we traveled from India to Mexico to Italy, Australia, UK, and all across the US as he sought to understand the struggles and triumphs of entrepreneurs facing unprecedented challenges.
THE STORIES
Through extensive global story hunting, we enlisted entrepreneurs at every stage of the journey – from industry leaders like David Chang and Ben & Jerry, to emerging innovators like Desserto – who figured out how to turn cactus into leather – to mom and pops across the planet.
“I’m on a journey to meet some of the world’s most exciting entrepreneurs. I want to see what makes them resilient, and focused – but also what happens when thinks don’t go as planned.”
SUNEEL GUPTA, HOST
Each of the series’ eleven globetrotting episodes featured our host on a journey to meet with two early or mid stage entrepreneurs and one established expert, threading everyone’s unique experiences together into a cohesive theme. Themes were informed by extensive research into key pain points of Amex’s entrepreneur audience.
THE SERIES
MADE FOR SOCIAL
We also captured and crafted short-form content for social, featuring business insights, entrepreneur profiles, and behind-the-scenes moments to help extend the reach of the series.
In addition to the assets created as part of the integrated campaign, Amex leveraged this treasure trove of storytelling content across newsletters, web, and marketing channels for the next two years.
IMPACT
We designed the series so our entrepreneur audience could see themselves in every struggle and every triumph on screen. Through rounds of qualitative research, Amex found that the series more than delivered on that promise.
The research showed that the series helped entrepreneurs “feel less alone and more optimistic” about their challenges.
Viewers stayed engaged because “it felt like premium entertainment, not business content.”
“Stories of resilience and innovation resonated” with the audience.
Global perspectives revealed “the universal nature of entrepreneurial challenges.”
“Diverse representation across industries and owners” strengthened audience connection.
Business Class demonstrates how branded content can transcend traditional boundaries, serving both business objectives and audience needs through powerful, authentic storytelling. And most importantly positioned American Express as a brand that truly understands entrepreneurs – without ever having to say so directly.
And after the success of Season 2, we were brought back for Season 3!
Impact & Recognition
AICP Next
Award
Shortlist, Branded Entertainment
Webbys
Honoree, Unscripted
Amazon
Prime
Featured Series
CREDITS
Showrunner & Director
Nico Carbonaro, Ben Leavitt
Producer
Jon Campbell
Executive Producer
Patrick Degan, Melanie Baines
DP
Keenan Newman
Editor
Ryan Rothmaier, George Manatos
Lindsay Rothenberg
Story Producer
Music
Spacelute
Mom & Pop
Color
Dentsu MGB
Agency