Shirofune has entered into a partnership with Direct Agents, integrating its AI-based automation platform into the marketing agency's retail media and eCommerce operations. Direct Agents, which operates in New York, Los Angeles, and Austin, will serve as a flagship partner for Shirofune in the United States.
Operational integration
Direct Agents has adopted Shirofune's automation capabilities to manage Amazon Ads campaigns and other retail media initiatives. The platform's suite, including real-time keyword bidding and dynamic budget reallocation, is being used to improve the efficiency of digital advertising campaigns. Internal benchmarking at Direct Agents indicates a reduction in ad management time of between 27% and 47% since deploying the system. The time saved has allowed its teams to shift resources to strategic planning and campaign analysis.
Performance gains
The combined use of Shirofune's automation and Direct Agents' retail media expertise has produced measurable results. For one consumer packaged goods client, a 12% increase in Amazon-related media spend contributed to a 44% rise in revenue attributed to these campaigns. This has been achieved while maintaining efficiency, according to both companies.
"Our partnership with Shirofune goes far beyond adoption-it's a collaboration focused on continuous improvement and client success," said Josh Boaz, Co-Founder and Managing Director, Direct Agents. "We're always looking to partner with best-in-class technology companies, and with Shirofune, we're redefining retail media efficiency-accelerating decisions, increasing precision, and driving stronger results for brands."
Ecosystem development
Direct Agents is now acting as a preferred referral partner for Shirofune in the North American market. The arrangement includes joint initiatives in product feedback, feature testing, and educational activities aimed at helping clients explore automation in advertising.
Shirofune, which is used by more than 10,000 advertisers in Japan, is expanding into the US as it aims to build an ecosystem involving agencies and technology partners. Shirofune's platform automates budgeting, monitoring, and optimisation across multiple ad channels from a single interface.
"Direct Agents brings the ideal combination of technical sophistication and performance focus that aligns perfectly with Shirofune's mission," said Mitsunaga Kikuchi, Founder and CEO, Shirofune. "As a flagship U.S. partner, they are helping us demonstrate what's possible when automation and human expertise work together. Together, we're enabling marketers to scale smarter and faster."
