17629: On Grey Matters.

Advertising Age reported on executive moves at Grey that were overshadowed by the resignation of  VML Global CEO-WPP Creative CEO Jon Cook, adding accelerant to the global flaming dumpster.

Back in 2020, Grey almost vanished via plans to fold the White advertising agency into AKQA—until staffers and clients protested. The merger reignited in 2024–2025 and dissolved in 2025 when Grey shifted under the Ogilvy Group banner.

Now it appears even Grey employees don’t wanna be associated with Grey, as the Global Chief Creative Officer bailed out to launch his own White advertising agency.

Meanwhile, other Grey executives were shuttled to different positions within the single White operating company.

Instead of asking, “Pardon me, would you have any Grey Poupon?” the question is, “Pardon me, would you have Grey pooped on?”

Grey’s global chief creative officer leaves to start his own agency

By Brian Bonilla

Multiple leadership changes are underway at Grey, according to an internal memo Laurent Ezekiel, global CEO of The Ogilvy Group, sent this morning, which Ad Age obtained.

Most notably, Gabriel Schmitt, Grey’s global chief creative officer, is leaving to launch his own agency, Ezekiel wrote in his memo. Schmitt’s departure from the WPP agency is effective Oct. 1.

“For a creative of Gab’s caliber, this marks a natural evolution in his leadership journey, which we are proud to champion,” Ezekiel wrote.

Schmitt wasn’t immediately available for comment. He joined Grey as global CCO in March 2023 after serving as co-chief creative officer of FCB New York. During his tenure, Grey produced work including Anheuser-Busch InBev’s “For Every Golden Moment,” which Ezekiel described in his memo as the brewer’s biggest-ever global campaign, as well as “SOS POS” for BCP Bank, which won a Creative Data Grand Prix at the 2026 Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity.

Two other Grey leaders are making moves within WPP. Global Chief Client Officer Jason Kahner and Global Chief Strategy and Data Officer Jonathan Lee will move into dedicated WPP global client and strategy leadership roles for Henkel and Kenvue/Kimberly-Clark, respectively, according to Ezekiel’s memo. Those transitions will take place over the next few months.

‘Grey remains Grey’

The moves represent another step in Grey’s integration with Ogilvy, which began in May 2025. The agencies have maintained their individual brands while increasingly operating as part of a broader Ogilvy Group.

Grey’s creative leadership will now report to Liz Taylor, Ogilvy’s global chief creative officer. This officially leaves Grey without a traditional global leadership team; its global CEO, Laura Maness, departed last year.

“Broadly speaking, reporting lines will remain as is—in most instances, routing directly through local office leadership and respective regional structures, and ultimately up through me,” Ezekiel wrote. “This gives teams the autonomy and ability to make decisions closer to client and other local considerations.”

The latest changes are intended to give Grey’s regional and local offices greater responsibility while connecting them more directly with Ogilvy’s broader capabilities, Ezekiel said. Grey’s local office leadership and regional structures will remain intact, according to the memo. Its teams will also continue to pitch for business and produce work under the Grey name, and its culture, social channels and email signatures will remain unchanged.

Grey teams will also have increased access to The Ogilvy Group’s capabilities across sports and entertainment, PR, health and innovation, as well as WPP’s technology offerings.

“Grey remains Grey,” Ezekiel wrote. “Day to day, Grey teams will continue to identify, pitch, win and create work as Grey.”

17604: Continuing Cola Wars Craziness.

 

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.

17601: On Polluting The World With Mediocrity.

 

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.

17063: More Mix-Ups At WPP.

 

Advertising Age reported WPP continues to bland, er, blend its White advertising agencies, shifting Grey to report into the Ogilvy multiverse. Only in Adland does adding Grey result in White. The next color to expect is Pink—as in pink slips.

 

WPP moves Grey’s reporting structure under Ogilvy

 

By Brian Bonilla

 

WPP is moving Grey to report into the Ogilvy network, according to internal memos from the agencies received by Ad Age. Previously, Grey reported into AKQA.

 

In a memo to staff, Devika Bulchandani, Ogilvy’s global CEO, said that this won’t be a merger. “Grey will remain a standalone agency brand that will continue independently serving its clients with the same dedication and expertise they’ve come to expect,” she wrote.

 

In a separate memo, Grey Global CEO Laura Maness said the move comes as AKQA plans to name a new global CEO. AKQA’s previous CEO, Ajaz Ahmed, resigned last year and recently started his own agency.

 

“With AKQA anticipating the announcement of a new global CEO this summer, we—the Grey, AKQA, Ogilvy and WPP leadership teams—felt it was the right time to review reporting structures,” Maness wrote in her memo. “Given Grey’s transformation and resurgence as a highly regarded and awarded powerhouse creative agency, this realignment with Ogilvy is a natural fit.”

 

The news comes a week after it was reported that WPP’s media network GroupM will be undergoing structural changes that have resulted in layoffs. WPP didn’t immediately respond on whether there will be layoffs tied to this move or if there are plans to sell AKQA.

 

“Laura and I will be working closely to find opportunities to deepen collaboration and drive growth for both Grey and the broader Ogilvy network,” Bulchandani wrote in her memo. “This includes exploring strategic opportunities where Ogilvy’s complementary capabilities—from Ogilvy One and Ogilvy Consulting to Ogilvy PR’s expertise at the intersection of earned, social, and influence—can add value to Grey’s clients, and vice versa.”

 

Other agencies within Ogilvy’s network include David, INGO and New Commercial Arts.

16591: WPP Merges Grey & AKQA, Excretes Titanic Turd.

Campaign reported WPP is once again merging outhouses—White advertising agency Grey and White digital and design firm AKQA—to create a global shitshow.

 

This latest twosome toilet re-flushes a rejiggering attempted in 2020, when the White holding company sought to place both companies under the banner of AKQA Group. The deal was nixed when Grey staffers—along with longtime client Procter & Gamble—staged protests.

 

WPP CEO Mark Read seemingly caved in to the complaints, despite reportedly having initiated the merger as early as 2018. It now turns out, however, that Grey and AKQA were quietly partnering all along, which makes the big announcement a farting formality.

 

Most outrageous is the WPP contention that only 11 people will be “impacted” by redundancies. Sounds—and smells—like fecal impaction.

 

AKQA and Grey merge operations in five markets in efficiency drive

 

By Gideon Spanier

 

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 United Arab Emirates.

 

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, 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% – or around 11 employees – will be “impacted” in “duplicative, non-billable or low-billable roles”.

 

Grey has been part of AKQA for financial reporting purposes since the end of 2020, but the two agencies have continued to go to market as separate brands.

 

The “strategic realignment” in five markets “enhances AKQA’s capabilities and focuses Grey’s footprint on growth markets”, the companies said.

 

This is what the changes mean in each market:

 

• In Australia, AKQA will become the sole brand and the Grey brand, which has operated as WhiteGrey, will be dropped.

 

• Similarly, in the UAE, AKQA will be the sole brand and Grey Dubai will be dropped.

 

• In Belgium, Famous Grey will rebrand to AKQA Brussels, where AKQA has not previously had an office.

 

• In Italy, AKQA and Grey will merge under AKQA’s leadership, but both brands will continue to operate for clients, which include Unicredit – a recent joint win.

 

• In China, AKQA and Grey will merge in Shanghai under Grey’s leadership, but both brands will continue to operate and serve clients, which include L’Oreal and Nike.

 

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.”

 

A year of efficiency

 

Ahmed said: “We are proud to partner with Laura’s team and believe the Grey brand has lasting value. Driving operational excellence is core to our mission of delivering sustainable growth and in service of building a leaner, more agile agency to improve our performance and better enable our long-term vision.”

 

WPP has been making efficiencies across the holding company, most notably with the merger of VMLY&R and Wunderman Thompson to create VML in October 2023, and it told investors at its capital markets day in January that it plans to save £125m through restructuring as well as investing £250m in artificial intelligence and technology.

 

Revenues from its creative agencies declined 1.6% last year.

 

Ahmed conceded that creative agencies have been facing “increasing competition” and “different competition” from new and existing players in the marketing eco-system and the rise of AI has brought new issues.

 

“The way that an agency stays relevant is by increasing the level of innovation and its value-add for its clients, and that’s really what we’re focused on,” he said.

 

Ahmed described the merger of offices in five markets as part of “a year of efficiency” for AKQA and Grey – a nod to how Meta positioned its global overhaul in 2023 that led to a big leap in profitability.

 

Asked why AKQA and Grey have not followed VML in going for a full-blown merger, he said: “The easy thing to do is to make one brand but it’s not the right thing to do and there’s immense value in the Grey brand and the Grey leadership team.

 

“And that’s reflected in the in-bound [interest] we're getting, the opportunities we're getting and the incredible team that's been built under Laura's leadership.”

 

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.”

 

She went on: “We’re transforming ourselves to grow faster and we have an incredible opportunity to make the most of our collective scale. And this intentional [smaller] footprint [for Grey] is going to create new opportunities for our people, and it will deliver even better results for our clients. The goal for Grey has never been to be WPP's biggest agency. It’s to be the fittest.”

 

Maness said Grey has already made progress in a number of areas that go beyond headline staff numbers including improving the gender balance and diverstiy of leadership.

 

“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.

16562: BHM 2024—DESTA.

 

Montreal-based Black Community Network DESTA teamed with Global Health and Wellness Advertising Agency TANK Worldwide to create Speechlist—touted as a Black History Month initiative.

 

There’s something odd about the endeavor, beyond being among very, very few BHM campaigns ever posted at Ads of the World—and soon to be totally eclipsed by International Women’s Day and Women’s History Month hype.

 

DESTA clearly articulates its mission and goals; plus, team members are listed by name and bios.

 

TANK Worldwide is fuzzily tied to WPP and White advertising agency Grey; plus, leadership and staff are hidden from view at the corporate website.

 

Can’t help but think TANK viewed Speechlist as a checklist item—that is, the work represents performative, box-checking propaganda.

 

16414: Winging It At The Former WingLatino.

 

This Mass Mutual commercial hypes empowering Hispanic business owners, presumably to celebrate National Hispanic Heritage Month. Except the credits show it was created by Grey—a White advertising agency—which is sort of a slap in the face to Hispanic-owned agencies, no?

 

Later learned the following from HispanicAd.com:

 

“At the end of 2018, WPP parent corporation of Grey decided based on pressure from key clients like Procter & Gamble, that multicultural talent needs to be integrated in all vertical and horizontal levels in the agency structure. WING employees and talent will be integrated under the Grey New York agency and will not function as a separate division within the WPP and Grey Network.”

 

And here’s the hype from WPP.com:

 

“Wing (formerly known as WingLatino) is a leading full-service marketing communications agency focused on the intersection of the U.S. Hispanic, Latin American and general markets. Founded in 1979 as one of the pioneering agencies in Hispanic marketing, today we are re-imagining what it means to be an agency in the Latino space. Our client roster includes some of the world’s most recognizable brands and we are headquartered in New York with offices in Miami. For a look at who we are and what inspires us, visit www.insidewing.com”

 

In short, it appears that a once-independent Hispanic shop was absorbed into Grey by WPP, appeasing alleged demands from clients such as Procter & Gamble to diversify the White advertising agency.

 

Can’t help but wonder about the truth behind the scenario. Did WingLatino lose its minority-owned status—along with a website that has seemingly disappeared? Are the former WingLatino employees really integrated? Do they receive equal opportunities—and salaries—versus White Grey peers? Are the cross-cultural efforts fully cross-functional, or must the Hispanic staffers deliver segregated services with crumbs for marketing budgets?

 

Mass Mutual gushes over empowering Hispanic business owners. Did WPP and Grey empower Hispanic business owners—or overpower them into assuming second-class citizenship?

 

¿Qué pasa?

 

 

16252: Receipt Or Deceit…?

 

This anti-racist campaign from Grey Brazil has scam written all over it. Hopefully, the client kept the receipt—because they should return the shit for a full refund.

 

 

Scampaign Explanation

 

Black people always suffer racism inside consumption spaces in Brazil. From harassment by security guards to cases of death. It’s common to see black customers being asked to show their receipts to prove that they own something they have bought. And this is one example of the many racist aggressions practiced in commerce in the country.

 

Based on this scenario, Grey Brazil created a campaign for Racismo Zero, a program developed by University Zumbi dos Palmares to fight racism inside commerce spaces, named “Receipts of Respect”. The objective is to raise awareness to the numerous types of racist aggression practiced in retail stores and then invite companies to join the program, which offers racial education to the employees of these companies, granting an “anti-racist company” seal to those that bring the cases in their establishments to zero.

 

The campaign is divided into two parts. In the first part, billboards will display actual receipts collected among people who already suffered this type of violence and had to show them to prove they haven’t stolen anything. The pieces explain how black people are forced to carry their receipts and invite companies to take part on Racismo Zero program.

 

The second part of the campaign is a platform for action: a free software for receipt printers that turns the receipt, a symbol of this type of racism, into a channel for protest and denouncement.

 

This software can be downloaded at notasdorespeito.com.br and works like any other app for receipt printers, but it brings a QR Code on the receipt, in the shape of a clenched fist, a symbol of black resistance, which directs consumers to a site where they can make complaints and find legal and emotional counseling, in the moment the racist act happens. In addition, the receipts printed by the software will bring real stories of black citizens who have faced situations of racism in their daily lives and had to prove that they did not steal or rob something that was theirs.

 

The software will be amplified by a film, billboards and on social media.