Two of WPP’s creative agencies, AKQA and Grey, are to merge operations in five markets as part of an efficiency drive.
AKQA will become the sole or lead brand in four of the five markets – Australia, Belgium, Italy and the UAE.
AKQA “assumes management” of these offices, “with Grey’s senior management becoming part of the local leadership teams”, the two companies said. Grey will be the lead brand in the fifth market, China.
Laura Maness, the chief executive of Grey Global, and Ajaz Ahmed, the founder and chief executive of AKQA, said in a joint interview with Campaign that the simplification would help to drive faster growth and appeal to their “burgeoning roster of global clients”.
The two agencies employ around 5,500 staff globally and share clients such as The Coca-Cola Company and Volvo.
About 225 people work in the five affected markets and it is understood fewer than 5 per cent – or around 11 employees – will be “impacted” in “duplicative, non-billable or low-billable roles”.
Maness said: “AKQA and Grey have already been working together in these regions and our areas of expertise complement each other perfectly.
“By bringing our teams together, we’re combining the best of both worlds – Grey’s renowned creativity and AKQA’s world-class design and innovation.
“I’m confident that this move will benefit not only our employees but also our clients, who will have access to a truly unparalleled pool of diverse talent and expertise.”
Following the restructure, AKQA and Grey will operate 50 offices – which they call studios – globally. AKQA will have 30 offices in 18 countries and Grey will have 20 offices in 18 countries.
The two agencies said: “There are no plans to integrate any other Grey studio into AKQA.”
Grey wants to focus more on global clients
Ahmed founded AKQA in 1994 and he has remained in charge after selling to WPP in 2012. Grey was founded in the US in 1917 and WPP bought it in 2004.
Maness, who joined as CEO in 2022, was upbeat about the changes, saying “I have never been more excited or optimistic about Grey’s future” and claiming its pipeline of client opportunities is “the strongest it’s been in a decade”.
But she said Grey needs to focus more on global clients: “I think there had been an over-emphasis on local clients and local markets, and this really re-positions Grey to super-charge its growth engine and to deliver on behalf of the current base of local clients and to continue to add global clients.”
“We believe we’re in the business of value creation and we’re also in the continuous improvement business and if you’re not changing, you’re not growing,” she said.
The original article first appeared on Campaign UK.
