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17622: One Less Cook In The Kitchen At WPP.

2026-10-06T00:12:25.884-05:00

Advertising Age spotlighted VML Global CEO-WPP Creative CEO Jon Cook, who will abandon his acronyms and the global flaming dumpster in March 2027 “to pursue an undisclosed entrepreneurial venture involving advertising and technology.”

Cook contends his exit doesn’t reflect reservations about the Roserrection. Okay, maybe somebody should define “net impression” for the man.

The single White operating company doesn’t offer entrepreneurial opportunities involving advertising and technology?

Cook admits he started considering his career options last summer, making his departure a relatively quick decision.

In the end, Cook joins a growing number of WPP leaders who’ve bailed out or were booted out in the past couple of years.

WPP will struggle to be the Trusted Growth Partner For The World’s Leading Brands when leaders are regularly shuffled, shuttled, and shat on.

A key characteristic for gaining trust is consistency.

Right now, WPP puts the con in consistency.

Jon Cook plans to leave WPP after 30 years at VML—what his exit signals for himself and the holding company

By Brian Bonilla

After three decades helping build VML from a small Missouri agency into a formidable global network—and leading some of WPP’s biggest agency integrations—Jon Cook is getting ready to leave and build something outside the holding company model.

Cook, who serves as both CEO of WPP Creative and global CEO of VML, will leave WPP by March to pursue an undisclosed entrepreneurial venture involving advertising and technology. He said only that it will sit “outside the holding company landscape” and will involve agencies, creativity and technology. He added that he expects mergers and acquisitions will remain part of his career.

Eric Campbell, currently North America CEO for VML and WPP Creative, will succeed him as VML’s global CEO in March, while retaining his North America CEO role. WPP plans to announce a successor to lead WPP Creative soon.

Cook reflects on what’s next after WPP

Cook took on the WPP Creative role in February, placing him at the center of WPP CEO Cindy Rose’s effort to simplify the world’s fourth-largest agency company. He said that his decision to leave WPP reflected a desire for new challenges, rather than doubts about the turnaround.

“It has nothing to do with my optimism about WPP’s future,” Cook told Ad Age.

Cook said his reflection began around the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity this summer. While he described it as VML’s best showing—VML and Ogilvy ranked second and first among creative networks, respectively—Cook said that the achievement prompted him to consider what else he wanted from his career. “I want to do something more entrepreneurial, more independent, and just completely different,” he said.

Cook’s cardiac arrest experience nearly four years ago, which left him without a pulse for nine minutes, also reshaped his mindset. “When that all happened to me, I realized I’m here for a reason—to find my joy in life. I definitely found that joy in VML and WPP; I’m just going to go find it somewhere else,” he said.

Telling Rose was difficult. Cook said he had never been more nervous for a meeting. “I have to be honest: I think her first reaction was shock, sadness, probably some anger,” he said.

The pair spent months working through the decision, he said. Rose ultimately supported him and insisted on an extended transition. Cook said he will help Rose shape WPP Creative’s succession.

“Jon’s contribution to VML, WPP and our entire industry has been extraordinary,” Rose said in a statement. “He is an exceptional builder—of enduring client partnerships, world-class agencies and a culture built on generosity, optimism and genuine care for people. I am deeply grateful for everything he has done for WPP, and I appreciate his commitment to partner with us through March 2027 to ensure our teams, clients, and new leaders maintain their incredible momentum.”

A career of innovation and integrations

Cook joined VML in 1996 as an account manager, becoming its 28th employee. He rose through the agency as it expanded beyond its Kansas City, Missouri, roots and became a leader in digital marketing. WPP acquired the agency in 2001 and Cook was named VML’s global CEO in 2011.

He helped orchestrate two major combinations of WPP’s agencies. After leading the formation of VMLY&R following VML’s merger with Young & Rubicam in 2018, Cook became global CEO of the current VML when WPP combined VMLY&R and Wunderman Thompson at the beginning of 2024.

This February, Rose expanded Cook’s remit to oversee WPP Creative, bringing agencies VML, Ogilvy, Grey, Burson, AKQA, Landor and Design Bridge & Partners under one operating structure. Cook’s initial focus was aligning agencies around four regions and regional profit-and-loss structures, removing barriers to collaboration while retaining agency identities.

He cited Kenvue and Heineken as major creative wins from the structure. “That wouldn’t have been possible in the past, either because of misplaced incentives, operational barriers or just bad blood,” Cook said.

He also helped extend enterprise solutions capabilities embedded in VML and Ogilvy across WPP under a WPP Enterprise Solutions brand, which now reaches other business units including media and production, as well as additional clients.

Cook attributed his integration abilities to communication and relationships.

“I’m not an operational genius. I’m not a super-consultant brainiac,” Cook said. “One of the things I’ve appreciated about both [former WPP CEO] Mark Read and Cindy Rose in my career … is they recognize that maybe the skillset needed for success isn’t those typical things. Rather, it’s someone who cares about people, cares about communication, celebrates success and puts people in successful positions.”

17621: On Creator Presence At Advertising Week New York.

2026-10-05T09:34:07.276-05:00

Digiday published a lengthy report on Advertising Week New York, spotlighting the increased presence of creators at the exclusive event.

No word if the creator reverence and respect extended to creators of color.

‘We’re all going to live with uncertainty forever’: Advertising Week New York opens amid industry rebuild

By Kimeko McCoy and Seb Joseph

Nobody at Advertising Week New York this week will be stuck for conversation, though to be fair you could have said that about any of the last ten. Organizers claim more interest every year, and the trade press, Digiday included, has a habit of calling each one pivotal. What’s different in 2026 is how much of the business is being rebuilt around the people who work in it, with plenty of them turning up unsure where they’ll fit once it’s done.

Ask the execs heading over to Midtown’s The Penn District and the work that keeps coming up is implementation.

“We’ve moved quickly from experimentation to implementation,” said Alistair Hill, CEO & co-founder of brand uplift firm On Device. Roblox’s vp of global partnerships and advertising Stephanie Latham, said last year’s conversations were about how comfortable marketers felt using AI, and that they’ve since struck enterprise agreements with AI partners. Kochava CEO Charles Manning wants to see how far agentic AI has moved from talk to operations. He said CFOs are taking a more active role in discussions about costs, and security teams are paying closer attention to how first-party data could leak into AI models. Hill’s worry is trust, because faster optimization means little if nobody can trust the data and measurement behind it.

Implementation, in other words, comes with a long list of questions nobody has settled yet, and plenty of the execs heading over say they’re going mainly to listen. Channel Factory CRO Nico Greco and Summit House co-founder Steven Cundari both described the week as a chance to team up. “I want to understand where our clients and partners are in their technology journeys,” said Greco of what he wants to get from the meetings he’ll be having throughout the week.

Much of that listening will happen away from the stages. The Trade Desk opens the week this afternoon with drinks at The Perch, the rooftop on top of PENN 2 — a few minutes’ walk from the main venue. Amex Ads has the Riff Raff club in the evening. Ad tech’s card players will be at the Sigma Software invite-only poker night, which is into its fifth year. For anyone who’d rather sit down over lunch, The Landing at PENN 1 has private dining rooms right on the doorstep, and Bar Primi on West 33rd Street takes groups. Speakers and top-tier pass holders get the Chase Media Solutions lounge on the second level. By Tuesday night, some of the crowd will have drifted down to Little Rebel in the East Village for Proeller’s fringe party.

Creators have their own circuit this year. Meta is running a Creator’s Lounge on the second level for creator pass holders and Dhar Mann, Advertising Week’s first chief creator officer, hosts a karaoke night tomorrow and an omakase dinner with Rick Ross on Wednesday. There’ll be plenty of creators to fill them. Ruth Mortimer, global president of Advertising Week, expects around 2,500 creators this year, up from 1,000 creator tickets last time. She and Mann have set a target of $100 million in creator deals coming out of the week over the next 12 months.

It’s a long way from how creators used to land a meeting with a CMO here. “I used to joke, the only CMO meetings we were getting were if they had a 12-year-old daughter who watched our creators,” said Adam Wescott, CEO and co-founder of independent content and media studio Home Game Studios. The welcome is, indeed, warmer than it used to be. Trevant GM Kristina Coughlin said creators have become “a core part, often a leading part” of advertisers’ marketing mix, whereas in previous years they were an extra. Wescott wants to see what comes of it once the week is over. “Creators don’t just want the invite to help promote ticket sales,” he said in an email. “They want real deals to come from it.”

AI and creators come with the territory at an event like Advertising Week. Measurement tends to get less air time, though the arguments over it have been building all year. AI-driven shopping is pulling budget out of search, while creators and social platforms want credit for sales that close somewhere else. Newer sellers like ChatGPT are asking advertisers to spend before they can show what the money did. Kochava’s Manning will be watching how those conversations play out over the next few days: “Our sideline conversations are deliberately focused on deep, structural partnerships rather than transactional pitch meetings. Specifically, our calendar is booked with meetings in three categories: Enterprise Marketers seeking truth and leverage, ecosystem and platform partners that want strategically minded growth and organizations that want true AI-driven transformation in their processes.”

None of this gets settled by Thursday, and Mortimer isn’t pretending otherwise. “We’re all going to live with uncertainty forever,” she said. “So let’s try and find the opportunities together.”

AWNY wants creators in the room. Creators want to know what’s in it for them

At this year’s Advertising Week New York (AWNY), creators aren’t just part of the programming. They’re seemingly part of the draw for the event itself.

AWNY is trying something new this year. The conference brought on creator and entrepreneur Dhar Mann on as its inaugural chief creator officer. With Mann’s appointment comes the $100 Million Creator Challenge, a set of “interactive 30-minute experiences pairing leading talent with major CMOs to create ideas, content, connections and real business outcomes,” per the AWNY site.

There will also be an exclusive happy hour for creators, execs and cultural leaders, a curated dinner and a night out. The pitch to creators is clear: come to Advertising Week and maybe you’ll leave with a CMO-signed contract.

“It’s exciting more advertiser-first events are inviting creators, but what will be most telling is the results post-event,” said Adam Wescott, CEO and fo-counder of Home Game Studios, and Mind Chatter Media.

It’s true the ad industry is taking creators more seriously. Just look at industry tentpole events, like the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity this past summer. Creators all but stormed the French Riviera, looking to strike deals with business leaders. Dinners, key notes and other events that were usually reserved for CMOs were also hosting creators.

While event organizers roll out the red carpet for creators, the question is whether or not the benefit is mutual. That’s what Wescott has top of mind heading into this year’s AWNY, he said.

More ad industry events are starting to bring creators in not just as panelists and talent, but potentially to boost reach and promotion for these events themselves, he said. The question is: what’s in it for creators outside of a trip and photo op?

“Creators don’t just want the invite to help promote ticket sales. They want real deals to come from it,” Wescott added.

What we’ve heard

“For us it was important [Dhar Mann’s involvement] had a business outcome. We’ve hand-picked a group of brands and we’ve asked them to identify what budget they’re spending creators. Then we’re getting them in the room with the creators here. We’re tracking it because we asked the brands up front to confirm what they were planning to spend.”

— Advertising Week global president Ruth Mortimer

Advertising Week New York by the numbers

• About 2,500 creators are expected this year, up from 1,000 creator tickets last year.

• A $100 million target for creator deals coming out of the week will be tracked over the next 12 months against creator budgets brands confirmed up front.

• Nine stages and 36 day tracks.

• Advertising Week’s own realtor network, built with the creator platform Breakr, gives it access to around 350,00 creators.

• Brand marketers are now the largest audience segment, where agencies would have been a decade ago.

On stage

The creator advantage in AI search, 8 a.m. to 10 a.m. (leadership breakfast)
Jenny Penich, CRO at Influencer and Eleanor Hooker, head of community and customer marketing at Profound discuss answer engine optimization, how LLMs rely on human recommendations and why creators could link AI discovery to consumer trust.

Dhar Mann’s opening keynote, 9.30 a.m., Great Minds Stage
This is the headline Monday session. Mann will launch the $100 million creator challenge from the stage, and the event says he’ll reveal a big initiative for 2027 for the first time.

After hours

Amex Ads happy hour, 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. at The Riff Raff Club (invite only)
Sigma Software AdTech Poker Night at 7pm. This is the fifth anniversary edition and its invite only.

Future is Female Awards at 7 p.m.
The anchor event of Advertising Week’s Future is Female programme, recognises women and allies in the industry. Invite only.

17620: Converse Controversy Continued.

2026-10-04T20:33:18.037-05:00

From Adweek…

Former CMO Rodney Rambo Had Nothing To Do With Converse’s Controversial Ad. He Still Got Death Threats.

Doxxed and mislabeled by AI answer engines, Rambo found help from the people in his network

By Christopher Cicchiello

The threats started pouring into former Converse CMO Rodney Rambo’s phone on a Friday morning.

He had departed the company in January, and had nothing to do with the widely-condemned ad that featured Kpop star Karina in a white skirt, holding a pair of new Chuck 70 X sneakers, and lit in a way that recalled Ku Klux Klan imagery for some social media users.

But he had seen it the night before, the day it went viral on social media.

“You should be disgusted that this ad was ever approved,” one user wrote to Rambo on LinkedIn, in one of multiple comments seen by ADWEEK.

(Continued here.)

17619: WFA, WPP, WTF.

2026-10-03T09:13:08.773-05:00

More About Advertising spotlighted a World Federation of Advertisers report showing the use of labor-based models has significantly declined over the past 15 years, while outcome-based remuneration continues to dramatically rise.

In short, WPP is not doing anything innovative with payment schemes; rather, the single White operating company has been slow in adapting to industry reality.

The global flaming dumpster is an outdated outhouse.

More clients move to payment by results – WFA

A new report by the World Federation of Advertisers and Agency Mania Solutions reveals that the use of labour-based models has fallen dramatically over the last 15 years dropping from 54% in 2011 to 17% today, with a significant drop from 33% in 2022 when the research was last carried out. Over the last decade and a half, fixed-fee/output models have risen from 20% to 35% and labour-plus-performance models have more than doubled, from 9% to 23%.

Performance-based fees show the strongest momentum, with 58% expecting increased use, followed by value-based models at 43% and fixed-fee or output-based approaches at 36%. By contrast, 42% anticipate further reducing labour-plus-performance arrangements, while commission models also face more contraction than growth.

How Brands Define, Scope and Reward Agency Work also predicts that AI will accelerate this process, given that the technology allows agencies to do more, faster. Brands, however, are still catching up, with only 20% already evolving their commercial models in response to AI, although 61% intend to.

The findings are based on responses of 69 different multinational companies, representing 6 different industry sectors and a collective global marketing spend of $147 billion. Most (71%) respondents were in a global marketing procurement role.

“Clients ultimately care about the quality, impact and performance of the work – not how many people or hours were required to produce it. AI is accelerating this transition by enabling agencies to complete many activities faster, making time an increasingly weak proxy for value,” says Laura Forcetti, Director of Global Marketing, Sourcing and Director Marketing Services, Asia Pacific at WFA. “The growth of hybrid approaches also shows that no single model suits every discipline or assignment. The future of agency compensation is not paying for effort, it is rewarding valuable work, delivered effectively.”

17618: On WPP Leadership—An Oxymoron.

2026-10-02T15:47:52.235-05:00

MediaPost reported VML Global CEO-WPP Creative CEO Jon Cook is taking a walk toward an undisclosed destination, handing the baton to another VML veteran White man.

So, after orchestrating the epic erasure of iconic White advertising agency brands—and eliminating thousands of jobs—Cook is bailing out of the global flaming dumpster, undoubtedly with a golden parachute.

Cook is scheduled to remain in his leadership roles until March 2027.

In contrast, WPP drones don’t enjoy the privileged luxury of such advance notice—and their exits only include golden showers.

VML Global CEO Jon Cook Set To Depart As Campbell Prepares To Succeed Him

By Steve McClellan

Jon Cook, Global CEO of VML and CEO of WPP Creative, is leaving WPP to pursue the next chapter of his career, the holding company announced this morning. Cook will remain in his leadership roles through March 2027. He was a co-founder of VML in the 1990’s.

Another VML veteran, Eric Campbell, currently CEO of VML and WPP Creative in North America, has been named to succeed Cook as Global CEO of the agency, while continuing as CEO of WPP Creative North America.

Cook has spent three decades helping guide and shape VML from an emerging digital agency in Kansas City into one of WPP’s largest creative networks. In 2024, he led the effort to combine what was then VMLY&R and Wunderman Thompson, bringing together brand experience, customer experience, commerce, data and enterprise technology across more than 55 markets.

In February 2026, Cook took on the additional responsibility of CEO of WPP Creative when that unit was created as part of WPP CEO Cindy Rose’s efforts to return the company to growth. WPP Creative includes VML, Ogilvy, Grey, Burson, AKQA, Landor and Design Bridge & Partners.

Rose stated: “Jon’s contribution to VML, WPP and our entire industry has been extraordinary. He is an exceptional builder – of enduring client partnerships, world-class agencies and a culture built on generosity, optimism and genuine care for people.”

Added Cook: “This has been one of the hardest decisions I have ever made in my life. But after three decades of pouring everything I have into this agency and all of WPP, it is time to build something new.”

Campbell has been with VML for more than 25 years and has held central leadership roles, including President of VML, Global President of VMLY&R, Global Chief Client Officer and CEO of VML North America.

WPP said that further details on the leadership structure at WPP Creative would be announced soon.

17617: On The White House & White Advertising Agencies, Part 11.

2026-10-01T00:12:12.668-05:00

More About Advertising reported President Donald J. Trump aired a self-promotional video, prompting accusations that government funds were used to pay for a campaign advertisement.

The White House defended the video with a variety of legal and arguably looney responses.

It appears Trump is like the client—or White advertising agency—who greenlights executions without running concepts through the legal department.

Then again, maybe Trump is campaigning for a White Man Of The Year repeat.

Trump accused of using government funds for campaign advert

By Emma Hall

Only six weeks before the US midterm elections, President Trump has aired an ad providing a highlight reel of his second term and a promise that America will never be a communist country. The soundtrack repeats the words “Love me” over and over.

The controversial bit comes with the text overlay, “Paid for by the US government,” coupled with the timing – six weeks ahead of the critical mid-term elections. The White House denies using government funds to pay for a campaign ad, claiming that the work is a celebration of Trump and acts “as a reminder for Americans to love their country and know why it’s worth defending – at home, at the border, and abroad.”

The sped-up clips apparently include some of Trump’s signature moments like the US military raid on Venezuela, hosting a state dinner for Saudi crown prince Mohammed bin Salman, and accepting the FIFA peace prize, and pardoning a turkey.

The White House claims the ad is not campaigning and that “patriotism isn’t partisan,” but here he is boasting about his second-term achievements including tax cuts, manufacturing growth, and improved law and order. The broadcast version also features Dana White, CEO of the Ultimate Fighting Championship, saying “he is the toughest, most resilient human being I have ever met in my life.”

Albanian-American singer JMSN, who wrote and performed the song “Love me,” says he is “looking at lawyers” due to the unauthorised use of his work.

Further defence from the White House references Obama’s ads to promote Obamacare and Biden’s “We can do this” public health campaign. As Trump’s second term unfolds, it looks increasingly like he’s taking an ongoing trajectory to its logical extreme – and no one can stop him.

17616: NFL Questions DHS X’s & O’s…?

2026-09-30T00:07:35.220-05:00

ESPN reported the NFL requested the Department of Homeland Security take down a social media post likening former Philadelphia Eagles star Brian Dawkins’ punishing hits to ICE’s treatment of migrants.

Political organizations skirt around copyright and usage restrictions, leaving cease-and-desist requests and no-affiliation statements among the few viable responses.

Yet the scenario appears as if DHS and ICE are being positioned as proud partners of the NFL—or the NFL is a proud partner of DHS and ICE.

So, a penalty flag is arguably in order—although President Donald J. Trump would undoubtedly challenge the call.

NFL asks DHS to take down Brian Dawkins social media video

By Robert Klemko

The NFL asked the Department of Homeland Security to remove a social media post likening former Philadelphia Eagles star Brian Dawkins’ greatest hits to immigration agents’ treatment of migrants.

DHS published the X post in question Sunday evening in response to another account’s report that a “huge migrant caravan” was approaching the United States’ southern border.

“Our time has come,” the agency wrote, adding a video of Dawkins’ most violent on-field collisions.

Dawkins, in a text, told ESPN he had not given the agency his blessing to post the video but declined to comment further.

“I have very respectfully not given permission,” the Hall of Fame safety wrote.

The NFL said it requested the video’s removal, though it remained up as of noon ET Monday.

In March, the White House posted video interspersing NFL and NCAA football highlight hits with video of airstrikes on Iranian targets, days after U.S. forces destroyed an elementary school in southern Iran, killing more than 100 children, according to Amnesty International. The NFL declined to say whether it had requested the removal of that video.

That video also remains on the social media site.

Dawkins, one of the most physical defensive backs of his era, retired in 2012 and was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2018.

17615: On Escalating The Exclusivity Of Account Reviews In Adland.

2026-09-29T00:14:43.871-05:00

Advertising Age spotlighted a twist on account assignments, whereby a brand charged its White media agency to conduct a creative review for its first White advertising agency.

Or was it really a twist? It’s not the first time a pitch turned into an exclusive, closed, and clandestine affair—although the scenario offered an uncommon maneuver to maintain the status quo in Adland.

The brand is Humann. Yet the new partnerships appear to favor White humans.

P.S. to Humann: Your self-hype boasts being “The trusted name in cardiovascular health.” Research shows people of color in the US are at increased risk of cardiovascular disease and poor disease outcomes. Did you choose the best media and advertising partners to reach such critical audiences?

How media agency Eden Collective conducted a creative review for one of its clients

By Brian Bonilla

When cardiovascular-health supplement company Humann went looking for its first creative agency of record late last year, it did not hire a consultant or issue a request for proposal. Instead, it took the unusual step of asking its media agency, Eden Collective, to conduct the search.

Launched in 2009, Humann built its business around a supplement called SuperBeets that supports healthy blood pressure. The company has seen strong growth lately, expanding from a limited retail presence to more than 180,000 points of distribution in the past 20 or so months, said CEO and co-founder Joel Kocher. Humann is also diversifying into cardiovascular health more broadly, with cholesterol, blood sugar, omega and CoQ10 products.

“Our aspirations changed. Our ambitions changed. So naturally, the way you run your business has to change along with that,” Kocher said.

Eden was managing Humann’s media when Kocher began reconsidering the company’s in-house creative model. When he laid out his ambitions to Eden CEO and founder Alison Monk over coffee in New York, she was frank: “I don’t think you’re going to get there without an ad agency; a creative agency that can deliver the goods,” she recalled telling Kocher.

Monk initially suggested hiring a search expert. But Kocher persuaded Eden, which it had already entrusted with its strategy and business data, to lead the assignment. (Eden was hired as Humann’s media AOR in February after previously working on a project basis.)

How the process worked

That coffee meeting led to a four-week process that replaced lengthy questionnaires and rounds of pitching with a detailed video briefing and two primary interactions: an initial chemistry meeting designed to become a working session, followed by an in-person presentation by the finalists.

Six independent agencies were initially invited before the field was narrowed to three, with Humann ultimately selecting independent agency WorkInProgress as its creative AOR. Kocher declined to identify the other contenders.

Monk, who felt up to the task because she also spent much of her career on the creative agency side at shops including Grey and Digitas, said the review’s scope was intentionally broad because Humann hadn’t yet determined if it was looking for a long-term creative agency or a shorter-term solution.

“It was an amorphous ask: What do we need?” Monk said. “So we went through a range, and Joel and I sat down and said, ‘OK, let’s look at a couple of folks that skew more project-based, and let’s also look at deeper, more AOR-like partners.’”

The review began in mid-December with a mandate to reach a decision by February, ahead of Humann’s planned retail launch of a broader cardiovascular product suite in April. Monk said Humann’s executives spent “dozens, if not 100 hours” preparing for the process.

Rather than ask agencies to complete what Monk called a “27,000-page RFI,” Eden sent agencies a video featuring Kocher and his executive team, along with supporting materials.

The extensive briefing covered Humann’s history, its origins from research conducted at the University of Texas, its Nobel Prize-winning scientific roots, and information on how nitric oxide—a key ingredient in its products—works. It also detailed the brand’s past creative, evolution from direct-to-consumer to Amazon and retail, recent packaging redesign, consumer research and customer profiles, product expansion, media strategy and competitive landscape.

Agencies had one week to review the material before a two-hour meeting with the company.

“It was a chemistry meeting, but it became a work session because of the information we were given,” said Evan Russack, co-founder and partner at WorkInProgress. “As an agency, we value those moments deeply because they allow us to ask a variety of questions—important backgrounders—but also to determine if this is right for the agency.”

Russack said the video conveyed the leadership team’s personality, passion and communication style while giving agencies unusual access to Humann’s founder and CEO from the outset.

“It was really helpful that a media agency was running the pitch, because we typically have a ton of questions related to media, and we were able to get them all answered,” Russack said.

Each of the three finalists received a $15,000 stipend. WorkInProgress used the money to research consumers’ relationship with the supplement category, then incorporated the findings into its communications strategy and creative, Russack said.

Why WorkInProgress won the pitch

To Monk, WorkInProgress stood out for its “funnel fluency” across different marketing needs. Specifically, she was looking for shops that understood the difference between what she called “salesmanship” versus “showmanship.”

“Brands with high awareness can do more showmanship and only focus on entertainment, because they don’t have to explain who they are and what they do,” Monk said. “We’re talking about a complex product in a quickly commoditized category, with lower-quality value players nipping at their heels.”

The strategic challenge was to make cardiovascular health relevant beyond older consumers or people already managing a medical condition. Humann also sought to differentiate itself in a supplement category where Kocher said few companies have meaningful clinical science. That said, he acknowledged that the company had “over-rotated on science” with previous creative focused on testimonials, especially from doctors and researchers.

All participating agencies argued Humann needed a stronger emotional connection with consumers, Kocher said.

“Our formula was: give me a point of relevancy, give me a benefit—a reason to care. Then give me the science. Then make it credible,” Russack said.

For Kocher, the defining moment came about 10 minutes into the first meeting, when he asked how the agency views the brand. WorkInProgress Creative Director Josh Shelton responded by characterizing Humann’s existing brand personality as “cool Cheerios.” Kocher embraced the comment, which he recognized as “ostensibly an insult,” because it defined the brand as a management tool for an existing condition rather than one relevant to consumers who think proactively about wellness, longevity and performance.

“I thought, ‘Finally, someone had the guts to call it for what it was,’” Kocher said. “For me, that was the defining moment. I’d made up my mind right then. Ten minutes in, it was game over.”

Kocher actually bought a box of Cheerios that he planned to send the agency—but WorkInProgress beat him to it. Two days after the meeting, a package arrived at Humann via FedEx, with Cheerios boxes decorated with what Kocher described as “cool Ray-Ban shades” stickers.

The process also convinced Kocher that Humann needed an AOR rather than a project shop.

The first campaign, backed by an investment “approaching $50 million,” according to Kocher, will break in early October.

Monk said Eden does not intend to turn agency reviews into a business line. Its role grew from its knowledge of Humann and its position as a strategic marketing partner, she said.

Russack had not previously encountered a creative review run by a media agency, but said he wouldn’t be surprised if this becomes more common.

“We’re all looking for really good partners who have subject-matter expertise we don’t possess, and have a working style that matches ours so we can deliver results for brands,” he said.

17614: On Mark Read Exploring AI Possibilities.

2026-09-28T00:13:27.528-05:00

Advertising Age interviewed ex-WPP CEO Mark Read, who hyped his AI conference.

Looks like Read is transitioning from failing to extinguish a global flaming dumpster to organizing an obscure conference. The probable next steps include pseudo-consultant and honorary university professor.

Read may inevitably assume a series of roles, and through his performance, demonstrate that each position could be replaced by AI.

Mark Read’s next act—running an AI conference for marketers, agencies and startups

By Brian Bonilla

After seven years at the helm of one of the world’s largest agency holding companies, former WPP CEO Mark Read is running an AI conference called Prompt. The aim is to bring together about 150 people, connecting chief marketing officers and agencies with AI startups to figure out what comes next.

Read, who sold an internet company, WebRewards, to Bertelsmann during the dot-com era in 2001, is once again embracing a startup mentality while trying to help companies navigate the AI space.

The first Prompt took place in London in June. The event is designed for a small group of marketers, AI entrepreneurs and agency executives, with discussions held under Chatham House rules. The format encourages participants to speak frankly, Read said in an interview.

“We’re not trying to compete in any way with CES or even Possible,” said Read. “This is not about scale. It’s really just trying to focus on the intersection of creativity, AI, technology and marketing, and be small.”

Read, who exited WPP late last year, also spent years running Stream, WPP’s technology-focused event. He said that he saw an opportunity to continue connecting marketers with a new generation of companies developing AI applications.

Read said he sees a gap between the AI platforms marketers recognize and the applications they can put to work.

“Everyone knows OpenAI or Claude or Gemini, but on their own, they’re not much use to CMOs, right? They need applications,” he said in an interview with Ad Age. “And I thought, why don’t I see if I can bring these people together?”

Prompt comes to New York Oct. 6, during Advertising Week. Read expects about 150 people at the invite-only event, which is free to attend. Longtime advertising executives David Droga, vice chair of Accenture, and Carolyn Everson, now senior adviser at Permira, are some of the notable speakers. Other participants include CEOs and other senior executives from AI companies such as Profound, Listen Labs and Google.

Asked how much he had personally invested in Prompt, Read said only, “It’s not a massive investment.” He retains control over the speaker lineup.

“Not everyone who’s sponsoring is on stage, and not everyone who’s on stage is sponsoring,” he said.

The gap he sees with AI

Read described himself as a frequent user of Gemini and Claude for different tasks.

“The whole of Prompt is run on those two platforms—from legal advice, financial advice, managing invitations, creating content,” he said.

Read praised AI’s usefulness for startups like his own new venture, noting that established companies face a harder task of retrofitting processes and teams. The conversations Read wants Prompt to host reflect that issue: Companies are adopting AI tools, he said, but their efforts often remain disconnected.

“Too much of AI deployment happens in individual bits,” Read said. Companies need to move beyond experimentation, he said, by connecting applications, establishing sound data governance and focusing on work that can change how the organizations operate.

Read also thinks advertising inside AI tools has yet to realize its potential. “Now, what we have to do—and I don’t think we’ve yet seen this, even from OpenAI—is have an ad experience that fully exploits the power of AI to bring the right message to the right person at the right time,” he said.

He calls that “relevance rather than personalization.” Read cited a personal example of using AI while planning a trip to Alaska, noting that he would have found it useful if the tool had shown him which hotels were available, their prices and any offers while he searched.

Read’s time advising AI companies and using AI tools has also led him to consider how a brand-new agency might operate. “If I were a 25-year-old entrepreneur starting an agency, I’d be saying, ‘How do I embrace all of these tools and start from scratch?’” Read said. “What if you need fewer account executives when AI can take the briefing notes?”

Read remains a WPP shareholder and is keeping an eye on the holding companies.

The industry’s consolidation has been “driven by intense, sometimes irrational competition,” he said, adding that “pressure from procurement has led to an industry with really three major players, which hopefully will create a somewhat more healthy ecosystem for those three companies.”

Read is considering taking Prompt to Berlin, Riyadh and Singapore. Expanding Prompt beyond events is not in his current plans, he said.

Asked whether he has considered starting an agency or agency group himself, Read offered a glimpse of the possibility.

“I think about this,” he said. “Let’s leave it at that.”

17613: KFC = Kyiv Fried Chicken…?

2026-09-27T00:24:41.204-05:00

This KFC campaign—explained below—emphasizes even White advertising agencies in Ukraine love hip hop.

In August, KFC launched a new street food menu called “Street Beat,” featuring shawarma, hot dogs, Bessarabian placinda, and a bunch of other delicious dishes. The agency idealer$ was responsible for developing the project’s communication concept. The creatives decided to break KFC’s usual advertising rules. The campaign doesn’t invite people to restaurants; instead, it encourages them to head outdoors — to work up an appetite and enjoy the summer vibes and breathtaking views.

Especially for the launch of “Street Beat”, one of the country’s most popular musicians, MONATIK, recorded a sizzling hit of the same name, for which a music video was filmed during a particularly hot day in Kyiv. The music video became the basis for the street food line’s commercial, which is already airing on TV.

Working side by side with MONATIK on the project and the track’s composition were KFC’s new ambassadors — Bogdan Cooper and Sasha Bardachenko. These young talents emerged as the winners of KFC’s nationwide casting call, “Club of Fantastic Flavors”. Their musical talents, on-camera presence, and ability to create content truly shone during filming. Together with the star performer, they showcased “Street Beat” not only in the music video but also on billboards and citylights across all major cities in Ukraine.

A unique feature of the new “Street Beat” menu is that it’s convenient to enjoy on the go. To emphasize this, instead of the usual photos of dishes, the campaign showed how perfectly lemonade, fries, and even shawarma fit in your hands. These images are already featured on the menus at the restaurants’ digital kiosks and in the KFC app, as well as adorning subway and tram cars throughout the Ukrainian capital.

Ukrainians will be able to step outside — rather than staying indoors — to experience KFC’s new flavor in all its glory for a limited time — through the end of September.

17612: On Celebrating Inclusive Beauty.

2026-09-26T11:37:16.937-05:00

From The Drum…

What Notting Hill carnival teaches us about beauty’s inclusivity problem

By Manish Tiwari, Chairman & Founder Here&Now365

Notting Hill Carnival is a masterclass in what inclusive beauty really looks like. Here&Now 365’s Preet Khanna argues that brands need to go beyond diverse casting and prove their credentials through product, presence and genuine participation in culture.

Every August, Notting Hill Carnival showcases the same beauty truth: the haircare industry still hasn’t caught up with the people it serves. Locs, coils, braids, twists and afros filled the streets, worn loud, proud and completely unfiltered. But most of the products lining supermarket shelves were designed with none of that texture in mind.

So, what better test of a haircare brand than Notting Hill Carnival, where hours of dancing, heat and humidity leave a product that doesn’t perform with nowhere to hide?

At Vatika Naturals, over 140 years have gone into building a brand around one belief: no hair type should be left behind by generic haircare standards. This year, that belief met its truest test at Notting Hill Carnival. The result was #CarnivalOfStrands, a campaign built not simply as a marketing exercise, but as a genuine attempt to meet the community where it already was.

As Roshni Singh, head of marketing at Vatika Naturals, put it: “Our ethos has always been to embrace your natural self, and that belief sits at the heart of everything we create for our multi-ethnic audiences. #CarnivalOfStrands was a genuine attempt to cater to every hair type and celebrate the unique rhythm of every strand, part of a wider journey to build a brand that speaks to the full diversity of hair textures across our communities.”

What did this year’s Carnival tell us about building an inclusive beauty brand?

The gap is about presence, not awareness

Most ‘inclusive’ haircare campaigns stop at representation in imagery: a wider range of models, a more diverse casting brief. That’s necessary, but it’s not sufficient. What became clear early on was that the real gap was physical. Brands simply weren't showing up in the spaces where textured hair is most visibly, joyfully on display. So instead of running the campaign purely through digital media, Vatika went to where the hair was, taking over key spaces at Paddington Station to greet Carnival-goers the moment they stepped off the train.

That decision reshaped how the campaign was thought about as a whole. A poster can say a brand is inclusive but simply meeting someone where they are already celebrating says it more convincingly than any headline could.

Culture-first doesn’t mean culture-adjacent

There’s a difference between borrowing a moment and actually contributing to it. Partnering with Sundivas, a London-based music duo, let Vatika carry its brand ethos, ‘own your story, let them know’, through sound rather than just signage. It’s a small distinction, but an important one: Carnival’s invitation to show up exactly as you are works best when a brand adds something to that spirit rather than simply attaching itself to it.

Product credibility still must do the work

None of this lands without the product actually performing. Vatika’s Aquaboost and Curls Oil ranges exist because curl patterns behave differently under heat, humidity and hours of movement, the exact conditions Carnival puts hair through. But the bigger lesson for the industry isn’t about any single formula. It’s that inclusivity claims collapse quickly if the product itself was never built with textured hair as the standard, rather than an addition to an existing range. Carnival is where that promise was put to the test and proven right.

It’s more than just one campaign message

The haircare industry’s ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach has rarely reflected what Carnival looks like on the streets, and that mismatch isn’t unique to one event. It shows up every time a brand treats textured hair as a niche rather than a norm.

What #CarnivalOfStrands reinforced is that closing that gap takes more than a campaign message; it takes formulation built for the full range of textures, and a willingness to show up physically in the communities a brand says it's serving.

Vatika doesn’t claim to have solved that. But the brand came away from this Carnival with a sharper sense of what “inclusive” has to mean in practice: not a wider casting call, but a wider standard, for what counts as normal hair, and for where a brand is willing to turn up and prove it.

17611: On Annual Hispanic Heritage Month Pleas.

2026-09-25T00:10:21.066-05:00

Advertising Age published the obligatory annual Hispanic Heritage Month perspective titled, “Hispanic growth is reshaping America—is your brand keeping up?”

Answer: ¡No!

Hispanic growth is reshaping America—is your brand keeping up?

By Flor Leibaschoff

This Hispanic Heritage Month, we’re happy to report that the stereotypes are finally moving out. We’re not just your gardener anymore. We’re your next-door neighbor now, too.

In 2025, Hispanic households accounted for essentially all of the net homeownership growth in the U.S. And a handful of brands have already figured out what that means for them.

Census data compiled by the National Association of Hispanic Real Estate Professionals shows Hispanic households added 441,000 net new owner-households last year, the largest single-year gain on record. Strip out Hispanic buyers and the country ends 2025 with roughly 125,000 fewer homeowners than it started with. Hispanics now represent 10.2 million homeowners nationally, an all-time high, and drove 92.6% of all new household formation.

The other half of the story is who’s building the homes: 18.8% of Hispanic-owned businesses are construction businesses, more than any other industry. Those businesses have grown by 75% in five years, while Hispanic-owned employer businesses overall grew 44.4%. That’s compared to 0.46% for all U.S. employer businesses.

The Home Depot, a brand I had the honor of working with for over eight years, already built its playbook around that overlap: Hispanics make up roughly 30% of the construction workforce and a “good majority” of its pro customer base, per the company. Its “Latina Doers” campaign and 15 years investing in this audience just earned The Home Depot the 2026 HMC Marketer of the Year. Molly Battin, chief marketing officer, put it plainly: “The Hispanic customer is not a segment for us; it’s central to how we think about growth.”

Ikea also moved on the Hispanic buyer. It launched a full Spanish-language e-commerce experience in the U.S. in July 2024, not as a campaign moment but as a permanent shopping infrastructure, with bilingual customer service built in. That’s a global furniture brand betting on Latino household formation well before this year’s numbers confirmed it was right to.

On the building side of the business, CertainTeed, a Saint-Gobain brand, runs a national program that provides Hispanic contractors with bilingual business training, credentialing and warranty benefits, helping the pros keep building, not just houses but their legacy. “We love helping our contractors build more than trust with homeowners; we help them build their legacy,” says Ana María Pulido, senior manager of CertainTeed, who leads the company’s Latino contractor initiative.

Sherwin-Williams is doing something similar for painters: its 2026 Leagues Cup push, “Gana con los Pros,” pairs sweepstakes and in-store activation with an existing platform, Acá Entre Pros, built specifically for Hispanic paint professionals.

That’s four categories moving forward:

• General retail

• Furniture

• Roofing and building materials

• Paint

Someone, please tell the Wayfairs of the world, they’re leaving money on the table.

Speaking of money, banks and mortgage lenders should be paying attention, too. Hispanic buyers are twice as likely as non-Hispanic buyers to use FHA financing, the exact product D.R. Horton, Lennar, Rocket Mortgage and United Wholesale Mortgage all sell at scale.

The data’s out there: Brands treating this as core infrastructure are naming it as their growth strategy in public, and watching their ROI move because of it. The ones still treating it as a seasonal moment are standing next to competitors who already made their move.

Speaking of moving, it’s time to move on this trend and start investing in the Hispanic market, vecino.

17610: On WPP Warehouse Production Property.

2026-09-24T00:27:03.102-05:00

IndianTelevision.com spotlighted the grand opening of Devon’s Point, a production studio WPP is hyping as an AI-powered content factory.

Whoop-dee-damn-doo.

If anyone believes the warehouse is any different—or any better—than any facility at any White holding company or global flaming dumpster, well, you’ve bought a heaping helping of AI-generated bullshit.

IndianTelevision.com illustrated its report with the image depicted above of WPP CEO Cindy Rose in Devon’s Point. Or is she? Couldn’t a PR portrait be created via the wondrous technology with greater speed, efficiency, and affordability?

Will Devon’s Point utilize AI to fabricate triple bids?

WPP builds an AI-powered content factory as the production game changes

Devon’s Point combines virtual production, AI creative tools and human talent under one roof

By indiantelevision.com Team

LONDON: Artificial intelligence is moving deeper into the content production pipeline at WPP, which has launched Devon’s Point in East London as a global production hub combining AI-powered creative technology, virtual production and human talent.

The facility is designed to help WPP teams create and adapt content at scale, using AI and virtual production to build digital environments, product twins and localised creative assets without requiring conventional shoots for every market or setting.

WPP CEO Cindy Rose said the facility reflects the company’s push to make greater use of its AI capabilities as it looks to become a growth partner for global brands.

At Devon’s Point, teams can place a vehicle on a virtual production stage and create footage of it driving through locations such as the Swiss Alps or Tokyo without leaving the facility. WPP is also using the site to develop digital product twins and AI-powered creative environments that can be localised at scale.

The approach could reshape how brands produce and distribute large volumes of content, particularly as AI reduces the time and cost involved in creating multiple versions of campaigns for different markets.

WPP is also using Devon’s Point to bring AI closer to creator-led production. Its new creator studios are designed to help teams produce real-time content as brands increasingly rely on creators and earned influence to shape consumer discovery and purchasing decisions.

These capabilities are connected to WPP’s data intelligence and media operations through WPP Open, the company’s agentic marketing platform.

The facility also forms part of WPP’s push to build an AI-native creative workforce. Members of HEX Studio, its frontier AI studio, and participants in its Creative Technology Apprenticeship programme will work from Devon’s Point on live client projects.

Rose said the growing capacity of AI-generated content does not diminish the role of human creativity and craft. Instead, WPP is positioning the two as complementary, with creative practitioners continuing to develop ideas while AI expands the scale and speed at which they can be executed.

The launch comes a year after Rose took over as WPP CEO and highlights the company’s broader strategy of combining creative, production, data, media and AI capabilities through its technology platforms.

With Devon’s Point, WPP is effectively turning AI from a campaign-side experiment into part of the production infrastructure itself.

17609: Converse Defender Tells Everyone To KKKalm Down.

2026-09-23T00:19:20.950-05:00

Adweek published yet another perspective on the Converse lynching controversy, allowing an author to figuratively hang himself.

The color commentator closed by remarking, “I fully expect this column to incur similar wrath from the sanctimonious corners of the internet where offence is easily taken and blame must then be immediately apportioned.”

Okay. Challenge accepted.

For starters, the author seems oblivious to having assumed a stereotypical role in the matter. That is, he’s the Angry Old White Guy.

It’s a waste of time attempting to school the culturally clueless. Although it’s particularly annoying in this case, as the author boasts having a PhD in Marketing and hypes his MiniMBA programs.

He’s clearly out to educate the masses versus consider the opportunity for a teachable moment. Self-absorption always trumps self-enlightenment, self-improvement, and self-awareness.

The final proclamation underscored his ignorance: “It just requires everyone to calm down.”

Yes, calm down despite once again experiencing the lashing disrespect of an industry historically mired in systemic racism.

Calm down by being told how to respond to offensive material by a bona fide representative of the offenders.

Calm down when even the unintentionally biased avoid accountability as intentionally as card-carrying KKK members.

From Converse to Ed Sheeran, Let’s End These Tedious Apology Tours

Converse, Oxford United, and Ed Sheeran all got dragged through the same ritual for mistakes that were accidental or not even theirs

By Mark Ritson

It was a rotten week for Converse.

On Sept. 3, the Nike-owned brand posted a new campaign on social media for the Chuck 70 X built around Karina, the very famous singer from K-pop group aespa.

In the key image she stands in a long white skirt, wearing the shoes and holding a second pair in one hand, framed by a spotlight cut in the shape of the Converse star.

Two weeks passed.

Then, someone noticed that the edge of the star projected onto her skirt made a shape a bit like a Klan hood. And that the shoes hanging from her hand could be read as a body. Then a second image surfaced, from Converse Malaysia, of models on a ladder reaching for sneakers strung from a tree branch.

The two pictures welded together online into a single verdict.

Converse was now running “the most racist ad of the season.” The work was “shocking,” “abhorrent,” “repugnant.” Even if it was unintentional, the fact that it had gotten past legal, marketing, and leadership was itself an unforgivable offence.

Converse apologized within a day, pulled everything and promised to do better, but not enough for Louisiana Congressman Troy Carter.

“Lynching is not a creative concept. The Ku Klux Klan is not an aesthetic,” he raged. “This campaign should never have been created, approved or released.” Nike and Converse, he said, should explain publicly how the images had passed through their approval process.

Step back from the heat for a second. Nobody seriously thought, for even a moment, that a Korean photographer shooting a Korean pop star for the Korean market was evoking the Klan. It was an accident. And the instant the claims were made, Converse said sorry, and pulled the work.

Which prompts a question nobody in the pile-on bothered to ask.

What else was Converse meant to do here?

It didn’t matter, though, as a wrong had been done, and offence taken. It didn’t matter whether it accidental or not, or whether an apology had already been offered.

Penalties must apply.

The same script ran in England last week around the same time at Oxford United, a third tier football club. The team was founded in 1893, and a new range of American college-style clothing celebrated the fact with UNITED across the shoulders and a big 93 beneath it.

The collection went live on Sept. 11.

Almost immediately, someone inside the club worked out what a United 93 shirt looks like on the 25th anniversary of 9/11. The range and the posts promoting it were gone within two hours. That should have been the end of it.

It wasn’t. A week later, the club was being roasted on CNN, ESPN, and the Washington Post and had issued a full confession. The shirts “should not have reached the point of sale and we take full responsibility for not undertaking proper due diligence.” Again, nobody suggested any of this was deliberate. And again, the mistake was fixed within hours. But still an apology was required.

Then there is Ed Sheeran

On Saturday night, Sheeran delivered the most extreme entry in this new genre: an apology for something he demonstrably did not do.

In Philadelphia, before playing a note, he stood in front of 60,000 people and said, “I am making mistakes and I’m so, so sorry.”

He was apologizing for a rapper’s politics, a stadium owner’s ban, and a promoter’s decision, none of which were his, to an audience that just wanted to hear Shape of You.

A man who has spent his career steering clear of every political issue going found himself in the middle of the most intractable one on earth. Through no fault of his own he found himself apologizing.

We have reached a very low point. The combination of crisis management, the fragmentation of culture and the insidious effects of social media have turned this decade into an unpleasant, sanctimonious place. Where the only option for innocent people is to eat humble pie with a double serving of reputational rescue slathered on top.

Converse set out to offend no one, and when it did, it made amends the same day. Oxford United made an awful accidental mistake and fixed it immediately, then apologised anyway. Ed Sheeran just wants to play music but must first apologize for things he did not do and does not understand.

I fully expect this column to incur similar wrath from the sanctimonious corners of the internet where offence is easily taken and blame must then be immediately apportioned.

Real harm, deliberately done, deserves an apology and consequences, and brands that drag their feet deserve everything they get. A mistake with no intent behind it deserves a correction. That’s all.

“We’ve withdrawn it” is a complete sentence. It does not need “we understand.” It does not need “we’ll do better.” It just requires everyone to calm down.

17608: Mo’ Motions, No Motion In WPP Whistleblower Lawsuit.

2026-09-22T00:12:36.520-05:00

MediaPost reported the latest motion sickness in the WPP whistleblower lawsuit, spotlighting a motion filed by the alleged whistleblower opposing a motion filed by the global flaming dumpster to dismiss the case.

Seems like lots of motions without any forward motion.

Foster Files Motion Opposing WPP’s Summary Dismissal Request

By Steve McClellan

Alleged WPP whistleblower Richard Foster filed a motion Friday opposing WPP’s request that the New York State Supreme Court judge hearing the case toss it before it goes to trial.

Foster argues that his lawsuit should move forward because he has provided enough facts to support his claims that WPP and its media division retaliated against him after he reported what he believed were unlawful business practices—primarily misappropriating client media rebates and repackaging them for sale by its own principal trading unit.

In late 2024 Foster submitted a report to WPP Media CEO Brian Lesser describing what he contended were legal and governance problems. Last month, Foster submitted details of a separate investigation by Sony that concluded that WPP Media siphoned $350 million in media rebates in China in a single year for its own use that properly belonged to clients. And he argues that the Sony probe backs up his own assertions that WPP wrongfully pocketed client rebates.

A separate hearing has been scheduled for October where WPP will present its case for sealing the Sony material, which it has said is not relevant to the Foster litigation. Foster will argue why the Sony probe details should be allowed as evidence.

According to Foster, Lesser acknowledged that the report raised "legal issues,” but instead of addressing the concerns, allegedly shared the report with an executive whom Foster had criticized.

After that, Foster says he was gradually pushed aside, excluded from important meetings and projects, and ultimately fired in July 2025.

“Defendants ask the Court to decide three questions on the pleadings: what Foster believed, what he communicated, and why he was the subject of months of retaliation,” Foster states in his latest motion. “Each is a question of fact that is not appropriately decided on a motion to dismiss.”

He argues that the court must assume his factual allegations are true at this early stage. He argues WPP is asking the judge to weigh evidence and resolve factual disputes, which should happen later in the case, not on a motion to dismiss.

Foster argues that Lesser knew about his concerns, and that retaliation began shortly after his report was delivered, and that there was a continuing pattern of adverse treatment leading up to his firing.

He also notes that in previous filings by WPP, the company’s explanation for firing him is inconsistent—that it has characterized his departure as an "ignominious termination" while also saying it resulted from a global restructuring. Those explanations conflict and raise factual questions that should be resolved at trial rather than be dismissed now.

Foster, who ran WPP’s content investment and branded entertainment unit, Motion, is seeking $100 million in severance and damages. He says the company offered him a seven-figure severance package conditioned on his silence, which he says he rejected.

17607: WPP Production Bids Farewell To Exclusive Bidding.

2026-09-21T00:16:28.365-05:00

Campaign reported WPP Production has taken down its guidance on rigging the bidding system, a scheme that instructed staff to “actively convince” clients to assign all production work exclusively to the single White operating company, effectively avoiding the standard triple bid process.

The Trusted Growth Partner For The World’s Leading Brands appears to have reconsidered the questionable ethics and lack of transparency posed by such a maneuver.

Looks like WPP Production will have to earn jobs based on performance and capabilities—quite a challenge for the global flaming dumpster. Yikes.

17606: On Converse KKKicks.

2026-09-20T00:27:40.313-05:00

BBC reported Converse yanked an Instagram advertisement following complaints that the image evoked KKK imagery.

At least they didn’t rename the featured shoe Chuck 70 burning cross trainer.

Converse pulls ‘deeply upsetting’ advert after backlash

By Amy Walker

American footwear brand Converse has pulled an advert that social media users said evoked Ku Klux Klan imagery, saying it recognised “that we got this wrong”.

The photo, posted to the company’s Instagram account, received backlash online after critics described lighting in the image as looking like a white pointed hood.

A pair of shoes, dangling in the picture, were also likened to an image of a lynching victim by social media users.

In an apology, first issued on Friday, Converse said the photo had been removed from its social media channels and it was working to remove it elsewhere. “This should not have happened and we will do better,” it said.

The statement also said: “We’re sorry. We understand why this image is deeply upsetting and recognize that we got this wrong”.

The photo was part of a campaign promoting its Chuck 70 X trainer, launched internationally on 27 August.

The campaign features the South Korean singer Karina, of the K-pop group Aespa, who is pictured in a series of advertisements for the shoes.

Founded in Massachusetts in the early 1900s, the popularity of Converse has skyrocketed since its Chuck Taylor sneaker was first introduced to US basketball courts in 1917.

The global brand has been a subsidiary of Nike since 2003.

17605: On Exposing Ugliness Of PepsiCo Pageantry.

2026-09-19T10:51:13.889-05:00

More About Advertising published a lengthy perspective titled, “Ad agency pitch theatre is not a sport, but a beauty contest,” providing a probing analysis of PepsiCo global media duties shifting from Omnicom to Publicis Groupe.

The title poses two inherent flaws.

First, the PepsiCo business was awarded sans pitch. To play off the content concept, a winner was crowned without having to appear in the swimsuit competition—or any other pageant event. Indeed, it’s unclear how the decision was made, rendering the entire affair suspicious and potentially scandalous.

Second, the opinion piece was illustrated by the AI-generated image depicted above. A more accurate cartoon would have presented three Old White Guys, an Asian man, and a White woman. It’s an exclusive—and not very pretty—spectacle.

17604: Continuing Cola Wars Craziness.

2026-09-18T00:13:34.389-05:00

More About Advertising opined on Ogilvy scoring a Coca-Cola European football project via a pitch featuring WPP Open X (presumably led by Ogilvy), Publicis’ Le Pub, Studio.One (led by former AKQA CEO Ajaz Ahmed), and Uncommon Creative Studio (co-founded by former Grey London Chairman and CCO Nils Leonard).

Was the pitch underway before Publicis Groupe landed PepsiCo global media duties?

Given WPP Open X was invented to solely serve Coke, facing competition from outsider enterprises does not seem to reflect favorably on the single White operating company and its offerings.

The scenario also indicates an industry shift, whereby reviews for major chunks of business are not necessarily closed affairs, exclusive privileges available only to a handful of White holding companies. Although it still involves cronyism and entitled relationships.

In the end, the self-proclaimed Trusted Growth Partner For The World’s Leading Brands hasn’t gained trust, realized growth, or been a partner for any brand in the world—and the global flaming dumpster now competes against ex-employees for assignments.

Coke goes great with humble pie.

More Coke pitches: this time Ogilvy’s on top

By Stephen Foster

They do love their pitches at Coca-Cola despite the creative part of the giant account supposedly safely harboured at WPP. This time it’s a WPP team led by Ogilvy reportedly winning a European football brief in a pitch against Publicis’ Le Pub (which handles Heineken), Ajaz Ahmed’s new Studio.One and Uncommon Creative Studio (there are nearly as many studios these days as pitches.)

Coke has invested heavily in football with some lively campaigns although this seems to be the first time it’s been a separate project. Coca-Cola is an official sponsor of the Premier League in the UK.

Nobody’s saying anything on the record but it’s an interesting pitch. Studio.One, the new creative company formed by former AKQA boss Ajaz Ahmed has already picked up a Christmas assignment from Coke. Ogilvy has won (or retained) a number of Coke assignments recently and seems to be the lead agency on WPP Open X work. Must be frustrating, not to say exhausting, having to keep repeating yourself though.

17603: The Naked Truth About Sydney Sweeney’s Novig Controversy.

2026-09-17T00:17:29.667-05:00

Adweek spotlighted a new Sydney Sweeney controversy, noting the actress has gone from inciting ire with her wardrobe to doing likewise with no clothing.

The latest outcry is for a campaign hyping Novig, a sports prediction market and trading app, which protestors complain is insulting female athletes.

Okay, except research indicates most people interested in services like Novig—over 70%—are young males. So, a naked Sweeney is probably perfectly appealing to the target audience.

The American Eagle advertising offended people of color, while the Novig promotion pisses off White women—a group that has historically wielded greater power and influence than minorities.

In short, this scenario might pose more damage to Novig than Sweeney delivered to American Eagle.

Bet on it.

One Year Post-American Eagle Scandal, Sydney Sweeney Sparks Ire by Going Naked for Novig

The ad has received backlash for reversing years of gains for female athletes

By Robert Klara

Last August, Sydney Sweeney broke the internet with American Eagle spots showing her in a too-tight top and struggling with the zipper of her jeans.

In her new campaign for Novig, Sweeney has solved those wardrobe problems: She’s not wearing anything at all.

“Today, we at Novig unveiled out first national brand campaign featuring Sweeney,” the sports prediction app announced on its website, “bringing to life our belief that the best sports trading experience comes from a platform singularly focused on sports.”

The campaign’s title is “Just Sports.” But judging from the heated response from the public, “Just Sex” might have been a better title.

Though some men have expressed appreciation for the work (one calling it “better than any sports playing right now,”) women have largely responded with disappointment and anger.

The problem isn’t showing skin, per se (advertising is already full of that). But at a time when female athletes have just begun inching toward parity in pay and fame, people feel Sweeney has turned back the clock to the Playboy era.

“I can’t describe how infuriated I feel when I watch this,” Australian gold-medalist swimmer Ariane Titmus wrote on Instagram, referring to Sweeney’s ads as “a kick in the face to every woman who has dedicated her life to perfecting her craft.”

Women outside the sports realm have expressed their dismay, too.

“Every great female athlete has used her platform to create movement, challenge norms, inspire change and make an impact,” AI executive Indigo Haddington responded on Sweeney’s Instagram page. “All she’s done is get paid for what she’s known for: her body.”

It’s unlikely that Novig or Sweeney were under any illusions that this campaign was about “just sports” in a literal sense. What’s beyond dispute is that the campaign takes a page from a playbook written long ago—a legacy that Sweeney herself seems to have nodded to in her response to the backlash: a post with a series of photos showing athletes, including MMA star Ronda Rousey and football beefcake Rob Gronkowski, showing plenty of skin.

Even so, even in advertising, a revealing image is one thing; a lasciviousness message is another. In 1971, National Airlines ran ads starring their leggy flight attendants who invited businessmen to “fly me.” In the early 2000s, Axe’s notorious “Billions” ad depicted a tribe of libidinous women chasing down a man who’d just used Axe body spray.

And while evidence is mixed that sex really increases sales, a 2013 study published in the Journal of Advertising found that “males evaluate ads with sexual appeals significantly more positively than females.” And when it comes to sports betting, one recent estimate suggested that 70% of the bettors are men.

Not that there’s no upside for the 29-year-old Sweeney, who’s not just the femme fatale here; she’s a partner and equity stakeholder, too.

17602: More Amateurish Clubbing Of Callaway And Good Good Golf.

2026-09-16T00:22:10.855-05:00

MediaPost published yet another perspective swinging at Callaway and Good Good Golf for their misogynistic marketing.

The author insisted the campaign “needs to be studied by anyone in the ad industry.”

Um, not really. There’s nothing new about the cultural cluelessness, circumstances, or root causes displayed by Callaway and Good Good Golf. Unfortunately, the concept and execution fortify a major stereotype about golf; ie, the game is dominated by White men.

The author’s recommendation involves four questions that should have been asked before greenlighting the concept.

Um, not really. Questions should have been asked and answered when writing the brief. And the concept should have been screened against the brief.

Contrary to the author’s contention that the scenario says something about creator campaigns, the issue is more basic.

First, experience, discipline, and mastery of craft are critical for success—it has nothing to do with the titles of anyone behind the production. In today’s arena, creator does not translate to creative director.

Second, insular and exclusive minds generate ignorant ideas. Full stop.

What The Good Good-Callaway Fallout Should Teach Brands About Creator Campaigns

By Kari O’Neill, Op-Ed Contributor

Good Good’s Callaway campaign, which features Good Good co-founder Garrett Clark running down and aggressively tackling female professional golfer Alexis Miestowski to stop her from grabbing his new Good Good-Callaway driver, needs to be studied by anyone in the ad industry.

This is a profound example of a mistake in creative strategy. The allure of content creators is huge, but brands need to remain hyper-aware of what concepts are strategically sound for their brand.

What Good Good said inspired the campaign. Good Good may defend the ad by saying it was a parody of the movie Obsession, where the main character buys a supernatural toy that grants him his wish to make his crush fall in love with him — to the point of unsettling horror. Good Good probably stood up in front of executives and claimed that’s how good the driver is — that the audience would be obsessed with it.

Unfortunately, the response has been the exact opposite, with many calling out its use of domestic violence against women for entertainment. Amidst the backlash, even Clark admitted, it was “a super dumb ad concept, terrible ad in general. Not the greatest idea.”

Here’s what Callaway needed to ask Good Good before green-lighting the concept.

Is this pop culture reference relevant for the brand?

One clear blindspot for Good Good was likely assuming what is popular in its own social circles may not be relevant to Callaway’s audience. Asking if Obsession was in the movie zeitgeist or something the masses would relate to should have been the primary question posed of the concept. Would the ad still resonate if the audience didn’t know about Obsession? Given that Obsession was released in May 2026 nationally and in the summer, a key risk is easily seen that the ad’s reference back to the movie likely would not be top of mind.

Does this reinforce or add to a brand’s story?

Additionally, a parody can be extremely effective, but only if translated conceptually well from the original creative into an exciting, authentic brand story. In Good Good’s concept, would the target audience see themselves in the story of the parody? Do most people see themselves in a horror film? Probably not. That, in and of itself, should have killed the concept.

Is this the right feeling for the brand?

Is this ominous feeling the right one Callaway wants people to walk away with after being introduced to this new driver? While the sound design itself clearly is inspired by horror films, it’s clear that the music alludes to harm while being played over an image of a woman being tackled to the ground. Don’t let an internally-focused haze mask the inappropriateness of the concept.

Who has the power in the story?

Even if this driver is targeted only to a male audience (which it probably isn’t, but let’s pretend), why did the person tackled have to be a woman? Strategically, what’s the advantage in that versus a man? The answer: absolutely nothing and worse. The hovering over her body while threatening her takes it even further from the corner of potentially funny to utterly unacceptable.

Because cancel culture is always a risk in the world of creators and brands, brands need to be aware of power dynamics, whether its gender, race, or sexual orientation, among many others.

The fallout certainly is not what anyone intended or wanted. According to Front Office Sports, three people, including Good Good’s vice president of brand marketing, Jeffrey Lefkovits have been fired. Good Good has lost its sponsorships from Callaway, its PGA Tour event title sponsorship, and its Golf Channel show, Big Break x Good Good.

Dick’s Sporting Goods and Golf Galaxy also pulled Good Good merch off shelves. This is a critical lesson for all brands to take a step back and ensure the right questions are being asked of a creator’s concept. Not enough questioning strategically could be the difference between an exciting launch and a brand nightmare.

17601: On Polluting The World With Mediocrity.

2026-09-15T00:22:24.171-05:00

The Marketing Dive spotlighted Coca-Cola’s “The World Will Wait” campaign, revealing the lame concept creators as WPP Open X, led by Grey, supported by Ogilvy, WPP Production, and WPP Media.

Tactics are running globally, except in the US—so, the whole world will wait to possibly see it all.

In the not-too-distant-past real world, such mediocre work would not qualify WPP to win—let alone retain—Coke business.

Coke asks busy Gen Z, millennials to log off for quality meal time

A new global integrated campaign spans a pair of brand films, out-of-home ads and digital activations that champion shared meals.

By Peter Adams

Dive Brief:

• Coca-Cola is encouraging young consumers to slow down and unplug in a new integrated campaign that positions the soft drink as a pairing for shared meals and will roll out globally, except in the U.S., according to a press release.

• “The World Will Wait” depicts busy Gen Z and millennials who miss out on important bonding, including family dinner time, due to work and other tasks before being reminded of what matters most. The concept comes to life in a pair of videos, out-of-home advertising and digital activations.

• In addition, Coke is enlisting influencers on a program that takes a page from the term AFK, or “away from keyboard,” which is popular in gaming. Creator partners on the effort will nudge consumers to put their phones down and live more in the moment.

Dive Insight:

Coke is emphasizing the emotional value of setting aside time to bond over meals as the brand tries to shore up a positioning as a pairing with food. “The World Will Wait” is targeted at Gen Z and millennials who are entering life stages, like juggling a career and young kids, where it can be more difficult to strike a work-life balance.

“In a world that constantly demands our attention, we’ve observed a growing tension among our consumers — especially younger generations — who truly desire genuine connection but often feel overwhelmed by the urgent pressures of daily life,” Arnab Roy, president of the global category at Coca‑Cola, said in a statement. “‘The World Will Wait’ is designed to inspire us and remind everyone that some moments are simply too important to postpone.”

The hero ad for the campaign shows a family that settles down for a home cooked meal only to realize dad is absent. When his son goes to check on him, the dad is cooped up in a dark office room and hidden behind a laptop screen, where he wordlessly signals he is still occupied with work. Later, the dad discovers a family portrait drawn by his son that shows him in the same light — face obfuscated by the demands of his job — which spurs him to log off and join the next gathering.

OOH ads carry a similar theme, bearing copy like “Laundry can wait. Fried Chicken & Coca‑Cola can’t” and “No one ever said ‘this meal could have been an email.’” In a twist on the tactic, Coke is also deploying social media influencers to ask people to set aside their screens to engage in quality time in real life. Digital elements will unlock rewards tied to the meals-forward messaging.

“The World Will Wait,” which is running globally but not in the U.S., was developed by WPP Open X, led by the Grey agency and supported by Ogilvy, WPP Production and WPP Media.

Marketing around food has been in focus for Coke this year. An effort that rolled out in the spring enlisted the CPG’s wide range of U.S. food service partners, including Domino’s, Popeyes and Wendy’s, to show how Coke goes well with a variety of meals. “And a Coke” followed a yearslong platform from Pepsi that argues the soft drink rival is actually the superior meal pairing. “Food Deserves Pepsi” features guerilla marketing-style campaigns where undercover Pepsi agents storm into places like barbecues and fast-food chains to swap out other soda brands with PepsiCo’s flagship offering.

The Coca-Cola Company saw net revenues rise 7% to $13.4 billion in Q2 and raised its full-year outlook around the earnings report last week. Coke commanded the No. 1 share of voice during the FIFA World Cup, which it sponsors, thanks to an advertising blitz that included heavy digital, social and creator activations. The campaign around the soccer tournament contributed to a 5% boost in volume growth for the namesake Coke brand, the company said.

17600: More Dizzying Dispatches From The Cola Wars.

2026-09-14T00:07:47.932-05:00

Advertising Age reported WPP is primed to win The Coca-Cola Company global media, data, and technology review.

Although as previously noted by this blog, the “victory” is mostly the result of Publicis Groupe nabbing PepsiCo global media duties. That is, the single White operating company claims the Coke prize by virtue of a prime contender dropping out.

According to Ad Age, WPP will not participate in the upcoming review for Coke North America media chores—although the trade publication previously identified the global flaming dumpster as a participant—which are being phased out of Publicis Groupe, who took the business from WPP last year.

The dizzying antics are likely driving people to drink. But not drink Coke or Pepsi products.

WPP is set to win Coca-Cola’s global agency review

By Ewan Larkin and Brian Bonilla

WPP is set to win Coca-Cola Co.’s global media, data and technology review and will not participate in the food and beverage giant’s forthcoming North America media pitch, according to people familiar with the matter.

The decision comes nearly five years after Coca-Cola hired WPP for creative, media, data and marketing technology across its 200 or so brands, setting up a bespoke unit called Open X. In early 2025, WPP lost its grip on a significant chunk of that business when Coca-Cola Co. hired Publicis Groupe for its North America media account. WPP continues to handle Coca-Cola’s global creative and PR.

WPP’s retention was expected by many after Publicis Groupe, which it had been competing against for the business, agreed to take over global media duties for PepsiCo. The French holding company’s decision prompted Coca-Cola to launch a review of its media account in North America, where Publicis is the incumbent, Ad Age first reported this week.

Coca-Cola and WPP declined to comment.

Coca-Cola has also been in discussions with Omnicom and Dentsu about the North America media business. Dentsu already works with the company in Japan and Korea, which were excluded from the global review.

PepsiCo last week announced it had moved its global media to Publicis from Omnicom without a formal pitch, relocating one of the industry’s most coveted accounts. PepsiCo spent $1.7 billion on global net media in 2025, according to COMvergence, making it a significant account for Omnicom to lose. Omnicom “remains a critical strategic partner across many of our marketing drivers, from creative to sports and PR,” PepsiCo stated.

17599: On Adland Analysts Seeing Industry Shifts And Shits.

2026-09-13T13:04:07.210-05:00

MediaPost presented more common sense posing as color commentary on the stunning PepsiCo media shift.

A spotlighted analyst provided obvious insights such as:

“…[O]ne can reasonably assume that pricing was a major factor.”

“…[M]arketers are focused on price and performance over transparency and control.”

“…[T]he loss could have more significant repercussions as it may lead to either more aggressive efforts with non-transparent trading activities, more significant investments in new capabilities or both.”

“…[M]any hundreds of people at Omnicom [are] likely to be laid off.”

Sorry, but delivering duh as expert opinion warrants layoffs at consultancies and analyst firms.

Analyst Sees Industry Shifts In The Wake Of PepsiCo’s Media Move

By Steve McClellan

Omnicom’s stock remains down about 6% since news broke last week that one of its biggest clients—PepsiCo—abruptly shifted its entire media account to Publicis Groupe without a formal review. Omnicom ran the account for 20-plus years.

According to the latest figures from COMvergence, Pepsi spent an estimated $1.7 billion on media in 2025. Of that total, Publicis had already been handling about $540 million, mostly attributable to the $500 million of spending in the Asia Pacific region.

Omnicom had about two thirds of the business, including the $780 million U.S. market.

PepsiCo has not explained specifically what led to the shift. But according to a rundown by analyst and marketing consultant Madison And Wall, “one can reasonably assume that pricing was a major factor.”

Which isn’t a big surprise, given M&W’s premise that generally, “marketers are focused on price and performance over transparency and control.”

According to M&W’s analysis, PepsiCo accounted for about 2.4% of Omnicom’s gross revenue last year—or approximately $400 million, which includes creative, media and other services. The lost media assignment probably accounts for under $100 million in gross revenue “unless principal-based trading was already a significant component of the existing relationship.”

While a nine-figure revenue loss is clearly a blow, Omnicom’s sheer size mitigates it to some extent. It’s a $26-billion-plus revenue company thanks to its acquisition of IPG last year.

The PepsiCo media loss could be made up for “in many ways,” per M&W. Strategically, the firm added, “the loss could have more significant repercussions as it may lead to either more aggressive efforts with non-transparent trading activities, more significant investments in new capabilities or both.”

And to the extent that non-transparent activities helped Publicis offer better pricing to PepsiCo, similar tactics are likely to expand industrywide, M&W surmises.

The firm also believes there’s a high likelihood that WPP will retain its $1.7 billion Coca-Cola media account, currently in review, and likely win back TCC’s $800 million North America business, which shifted to Publicis in 2025.

The PepsiCo shift will affect jobs with “many hundreds of people at Omnicom likely to be laid off,” says M&W. The good news: Many of those same people will likely migrate to Publicis, along with the PepsiCo business.

17598: On WPP Production Triple BS.

2026-09-13T12:09:51.241-05:00

MediaPost reported WPP Production aims to be the go-to vendor—and exclusive vendor—for every client served by the global flaming dumpster.

One controversial point involves the intentional goal to avoid standard triple bidding by offering three bids from enterprises within the WPP Production network.

In other words, the single White operating company theory is bullshit. WPP remains a confederacy of companies competing amongst themselves for billable hours—or outcomes-based remuneration.

Plus, it’s highly unlikely WPP would ever allow one enterprise to low-bid against sister firms. The scenario invites a rigged bidding system, whereby clients might be encouraged to choose a vendor sneakily pre-selected by WPP.

It all inspires a new tagline for WPP Production: From those wonderful folks who gave you a global crime scheme in media.

On a sidenote, the MediaPost report was illustrated with a metaphorical image of a funnel (depicted above). A more appropriate object would’ve been a toilet.

WPP Production, APA Lock Horns Over Triple Bids

By Steve McClellan

WPP Production is urging clients to do all of their production work with the holding company—thereby avoiding outsourcing to independent production houses-- and at least one production trade group says WPP’s stand is essentially an assault on “the free market in commercials production.”

Leaked internal documents from the holding company’s production arm state that "Our goal is to avoid traditional commercial triple bidding by proving the value of a centralized partnership by positioning WPP Production as the default, trusted partner.”

Triple bidding is the standard urged by trade groups like Association of Independent Commercial Producers (AICP) in the U.S. and the Advertising Producers Association (APA) in the UK.

The leaked documents suggest a way that WPP can circumvent the commercial bid process:

“If a client or creative team requires triple bidding to assess different options, we should evaluate if WPP Production can provide all three bids internally from the same or different markets. We can satisfy this need by offering three different production approaches, locations, and director treatments within the same country or within the region—keeping the work entirely within WPP Production.”

Steve Davies, CEO of the APA, issued a response that in part reads, “This is a serious threat to the free market in commercials production — and to the independent production, editing and post companies within it — but only if clients don’t see through it. I think they will.”

“Professionalism means putting clients’ interests ahead of your own. WPP has effectively announced it’s doing the opposite,” Davies asserted.

The triple bid, he added, is central to the collaborative system between agencies and production companies that enables “great work.”

WPP Production took issue with the APA’s assessment.

“Any suggestion that WPP Production misleads clients or undermines fair competition is fundamentally wrong,” the firm responded. “Selectively quoting from a comprehensive document doesn’t fairly reflect what is a completely transparent process.

“We respect competitive bidding and work with independent production companies, always adhering to client contracts and procurement requirements. We make decisions with clients, helping them find the right solution for each brief and considering WPP capabilities alongside specialist partners.”