A narrative strategy agency
for organisations with something specific to say.
The Parlor works with institutions, cultural bodies and founder-led brands on the argument underneath the brand — positioning, messaging and story architecture, written as a sentence you can defend, not a wheel of values.
- BasedAntwerp, BE
- ScopePositioning · narrative
- IntakeSelective, by year
Most organisations don't have a message problem.
They have a position problem.
The symptom is always the same: internal teams can't agree on a single sentence for what the organisation actually stands for. So the copy shifts by author, the campaigns say different things, and the audience feels the drift. New brand guidelines don't fix that. Narrative strategy does — by forcing the sentence to exist, and be defensible.
Why most narrative work quietly fails.
- 01
Values wheels instead of sentences.
A radial diagram of 'bold, human, iconic' is not a position — it's a compromise that nothing in-market can be tested against.
- 02
Consensus-first drafting.
The sharp version dies in the review loop. What ships is the version that offended no one and moved no one.
- 03
Narrative decoupled from the work.
A beautiful strategy deck that never lands in the copy, the film script, the pitch deck or the sales conversation.
- 04
Junior writing on senior questions.
The strategist who pitched the work is not the person writing the sentence six weeks in.
Read the room. Name the position. Write the sentence.
We work as one senior team across research, strategy and writing. The same people who read the room draft the sentence — and stay close as the sentence hits copy, film, deck and site.
- 01
Read the room.
Cultural, sector and stakeholder mapping. What the organisation can plausibly say, and what audiences are actually willing to hear.
- 02
Decode the tension.
Name what is actually at stake — commercially, politically, behaviourally — beneath the surface brief.
- 03
Name the position.
A single defensible sentence. Written to be argued, not admired.
- 04
Build the architecture.
Message architecture, editorial registers per audience, proof points, and the rules that keep the position coherent in-market.
Have a brief on your desk? Talk to a partner — not a planner.
- 01Positioning frameworks
The single sentence, the audience map, the tension it resolves and the proof it stands on.
- 02Narrative architecture
Message architecture, story pillars, editorial registers per audience.
- 03Voice & messaging
Tone of voice, copy frameworks, and drafting guidance for internal teams.
- 04Story platforms
Repeatable editorial platforms that turn the position into ongoing communication.
Narrative work that had to land.
Honest answers.
- Do you offer positioning sprints, or only full programmes?
- Both. Focused sprints run 3–6 weeks and land a defensible position with a starter message architecture. Full programmes go deeper into stakeholder research, editorial systems and rollout.
- Do you work alongside our existing brand agency or in-house team?
- Yes, often. We frequently come in as the narrative partner for teams that already have an in-house brand or comms function.
- What does a narrative engagement cost?
- Positioning sprints typically start in the low five figures. Full narrative architecture programmes are scoped against the work — a written proposal follows a first conversation.
Related from the studio.
Tell us what your organisation
needs to be able to say.
Selective intake. A partner reads every enquiry and replies within two working days.