Perk launches global ad campaign highlighting how shadow work gets in the way of breakthroughs
Boston and London, 02 February 2026 –Perk, the intelligent travel and spend management platform, today launched a global ad campaign including its first-ever CTV ad aimed at exposing the hidden work costing businesses more than $1.7 trillion a year.“Breakthroughs… almost” imagines a world where history’s greatest breakthroughs never happened, derailed by the hidden tasks Perk calls “shadow work” — invisible, non-core work employees do outside their main job. The campaign takes us on a journey through history, reimagining moments of progress, past and future, being lost to booking trips, filing expenses, coding invoices, or chasing approvals.
Co-created by Perk and AnalogFolk, and produced by Untold Fable, the multi-channel campaign brings Perk’s “powering real work” brand platform to life, uniting travel and spend in a single AI-native experience designed to help teams focus on higher-value tasks.Jada Balster, Perk VP Marketing said: “With the Perk brand launch, we knew we wanted to do something bold and show up differently to traditional B2B. We’ve been shaping this idea with AnalogFolk since early last summer. As soon as we started discussing the concept it was clear we were onto something that felt right for the story we wanted to tell. This campaign brings that ambition to life, showing how Perk uses AI and automation to remove the shadow work that gets in the way of breakthroughs.”Anna-Louise Gladwell, Managing Director, AnalogFolk, said: “‘Breakthroughs... almost’ was an opportunity to make a universal, yet invisible, problem visible through humour and bold storytelling. By imagining how history’s greatest innovators might have been derailed by everyday admin, the campaign highlights the real cost of shadow work in a way that’s entertaining, relatable and impossible to ignore.”Untold Fable produced the 60-second spot in collaboration with Femi Oludigbolu, an award-winning writer-director from South London, alongside bespoke music composed by producer Ife Ladi. The new campaign will be rolled out on CTV, digital, social and paid media channels across Europe and the US. Since November, Perk has also supported its new positioning with high-profile OOH placements, including the NASDAQ in Times Square, featured in leading print publications such as The Wall Street Journal and launched digital activations across social media, podcasts and other channels. About Perk Perk (formerly TravelPerk) is the intelligent platform for travel and spend management, built to eliminate the hidden, manual tasks that drain productivity and morale - Perk calls these ‘Shadow Work’. By automating travel bookings, expenses, invoice processing and events, the platform gives teams back time to focus on real work, with real impact. Trusted by more than 12,000 companies worldwide - including On Running, Breitling and Fabletics - Perk is tackling the 7 hours of lost productivity per employee each week, a $1.7 trillion problem revealed in The Cost of Shadow Work report. Founded in 2015, the global company combines innovation, control, and simplicity to transform how businesses work today and in the future. Perk’s mission is to power real work by removing the invisible tasks that slow teams down.About AnalogFolkAnalogFolk is an independent global next generation creative group. We combine creativity, strategy and technology to help brands grow in a fragmented, fast-moving world. We are proud to be a strategic partner to brands such as Nike, HSBC, L’Oréal, Meta, Johnnie Walker and Costa Coffee, and to have been awarded both Campaign Magazine’s Global InnovationAgency of the Year and a Contagious Magazine Pioneer. We have 300 folk in Europe, North America, Latin America and Asia with specialist capabilities across strategy, creative, technology, CX, design and content production. About Untold FableUntold Fable is a tech-powered production company on a mission to drive greater diversity, equity and inclusion within advertising. Untold Fable leverages a global network of 8,000+ filmmakers across 100+ countries to create authentic, culturally relevant content for brands including Nike, L’Oreal and Bumble. Part of the AnalogFolk Group, the global company champions diversity and inclusion at every stage of the ad production cycle, giving brands and agencies access to technology that enables them to track production crew diversity, ensuring measurable progress towards their DE&I goals. The company has offices in London and New York. CREDITSAgency: AnalogFolkClient Partner: Robert ScobieExecutive Producer: Natalie DobbinCreative Director: Jake Doran Creative: Alex Scott Creative: Holly GordonStrategy Director: Leo BakerProduction: Untold FableMedia agency: GoodstuffColour / Grade: Coffee & TVComms Planning Agency: Craft Media Perk: Rachel O’CallaghanPerk: Georgia HatlapaPerk: Jada BalsterPerk: Dylan BoscoloPerk: Jack DaviesDirector: Femi OladigboluSenior Producer: Ben LondesbroughDirector's Rep: Andre ReidDirector's Assistant: Shakira NewtonHead of Production: Becci RideProduction Manager: Andre WoozProduction Assistant: Effe HozaifehProduction Assistant: Ashani RobertsPhotographer: Johnny FonescaStills Digital Technician: Ryanna AllenPhotography Lighting Tech: Joe SmithPhotography Lighting Tech: Frederick Stisted1st Assistant Director: Luke Goodrich2nd Assistant Director: Oliver WatersLocation Manager: Francesca MaragoAD Runner: Marlon CangDirector of Photography: Deon Zan Zyl1st AC: Jamie Oliver Lai2nd AC: Matthew HollisSteadicam (AR Rig): Gary KentDIT: Rob GilmourPlayback Operator: Von AdamPlayback Op Assistant: Max Power-RichardsEditor: Simon RodgersVFX Supervisor 1: Callum WellbyVFX Supervisor 2: Angus WilsonVFX Supervisor: Jorg Schulz-GerchowVFX Producer: Thom GodsillSound Operator: Duncan EttieGaffer: Ryan MonteithLighting Desk Op: Freddie MeunierProduction Designer: Anna RhodesSet Decorator: Abbie KornsteinArt Director: Ashley DandoArt Dept Asst / PC Buyer: Lindsay PotterProps Master & Art Tech Vehicle Driver: Jason BradleyProps Assistant: Nick HancockProps Assistant: Kristell ExcellGraphic Designer: Abby JamesCostume Designer: Buki EbiesuwaCostume Assistant: Yann SeabraCostume Assistant: Halyna Gali HumeniukCostume Trainee: Amelie BinderHair Artist: Cynthia De La RosaHair Assistant: Kelly PoulterMake up Artist: Sophia GraceMake up Assistant: Imani RamseyMake up Assistant: Siena PowloskiCatering: Showbites
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