From left, Clive Mishon, Founder, The Alliance of Independent Agencies UK; Emily Foreman, Director, The Alliance of Independent Agencies Middle East; and Nick Walsh, Founder and CEO, Migrate.The Alliance of Independent Agencies Middle East has officially launched in the region as a membership‑based professional body representing and advocating for the region’s independent marketing, communications and advertising agencies.
The Alliance Middle East launches with 25 founding member agencies reflecting the growing scale, maturity and influence of the independent agency sector across the region.
The Alliance Middle East is brought to the region through the partnership of Migrate, the specialist consultancy designed to help global independent agencies expand and thrive in the Middle East, led by Nick Walsh, a regional agency veteran and The Alliance of Independent Agencies in the UK, led by Clive Mishon who brings together more than 100 UK members.
Nick Walsh, Founder of Migrate said, “The Middle East is one of the most dynamic and fast evolving marketing markets in the world, yet independent agencies have historically lacked a formal platform to represent their collective interests. This Alliance Middle East exists to change that. Our role is to champion the independent sector, support its growth, and ensure it has a strong, credible voice in the industry.”
He added, “Brands across the region are reevaluating agency relationships, looking for partners that can move fast, bring senior expertise, and adapt to increasingly complex challenges. Independent agencies are already delivering this value. The Alliance Middle East provides the structure, visibility, and advocacy to support that shift whilst growing the middle agency mix that is missing from the region but we see in other markets.”
Clive Mishon, Founder, The Alliance of Independent Agencies UK, said, “The success of The Alliance in the UK has shown just how powerful a united independent sector can be. Over the past seven years, we’ve built a thriving community of more than 100 agencies who learn together, elevate standards together, and win together. Bringing The Alliance to the Middle East is a natural next step. The region’s independent agencies are ambitious, innovative, and ready for a collective platform that champions their value and accelerates their growth. We’re proud to help bring that to life.”
The Alliance Middle East has appointed Emily Foreman as Director, who is an experienced agency growth specialist focused previously setting up and expanding an independent experiential agency in Saudi Arabia, and deep experience working in the Kingdom and the UAE.
She will lead regional operations, cultivate the member community, and drive collaboration and connectivity across the network, as well as driving the training opportunities for its members to help drive capability in the region.
Initially launching in the UAE, The Alliance Middle East plans a full regional expansion across key GCC and wider Middle East markets, with a curated, invite-only membership model designed to ensure quality, cultural alignment, and complementary expertise within the membership model.
The regional Board of Advisors have already been appointed and are:
- Elisabeth Anne, Regional Managing Director, Imagination Middle East;
- Mike Khouri, CEO, Tactical;
- Dan Taylor, Regional Director, Bellwether Brands;
- Lisa Welsh, Co-Founder & Managing Partner, North Seventy Five; and
- Roy Aftimos, Managing Director, C2 Comms.
The Boards role is to help ensure the Alliance Middle East continues to be relevant, credible and member-focused, while assisting in shaping its long-term impact across the region.
Beyond advocacy, the Alliance Middle East will focus on talent development, capability building, industry standards, research, events, and fostering collaboration between agencies, clients, media partners, and technology innovators supporting the evolution of a more modern, sustainable, and high‑performing independent agency landscape.
The launch arrives at a pivotal moment for the industry. The Middle East marketing and advertising agency market reached $8.18bn in 2025, with forecasts projecting growth to $10.76bn by 2031 at a compound annual growth rate of 4.7 per cent. Digital‑only agencies now account for an estimated 46 per cent of agency revenues across the region, while the wider MENA advertising ecosystem reached $47.8bn in 2023, with GCC markets contributing around 68 per cent of total spend.
