Five Reasons Why… Omnicom Is Backing BBDO

With the Omnicom-IPG merger now complete, the shape of the post-deal creative network is becoming clearer. Alongside TBWA and McCann globally, BBDO is emerging as one of the core creative pillars of the newly enlarged holding company. It is a network that will not only survive the restructuring but is expanding through the absorption of FCB into BBDO’s global footprint.

This marks a renewed vote of confidence in BBDO’s longstanding proposition: "The Work. The Work. The Work.” For decades, the network has built a reputation for consistent creative standards, operational rigour, and global effectiveness. Now that Omnicom, under the continued guidance of global president and CEO Nancy Reyes (above), is absorbing IPG’s capabilities and client rosters, BBDO is poised to become the group’s most scaled global creative platform.

In the UK, AMV BBDO remains the anchor - one of London’s most decorated creative agencies and a crucial asset as Omnicom consolidates overlapping capabilities post-merger; CEO Xavier Rees is one of the most respected operators in the business.

Here’s why Omnicom is doubling down on BBDO.

• A Global Creative Network With Powerful Consistency

  BBDO has long been regarded as one of the most consistently high-performing creative networks in the world. Across multiple decades, the network has remained near the top of global creative rankings, spanning Cannes Lions, WARC, and the Effies.

  What makes BBDO unique - and strategically useful to Omnicom - is the reliability of that performance. While other networks oscillate between creative peaks and troughs, BBDO delivers strong work year in, year out, across dozens of markets. That consistency becomes even more important as Omnicom absorbs the FCB network, whose global creative reputation has been building in recent years.

  By anchoring the expanded global footprint within BBDO, Omnicom ensures that its merged creative operation leads with a brand known for excellence, predictability and discipline.

• A Deep Roster of Global Client Relationships and Long-Term Platforms

  BBDO’s client roster is one of the most strategically valuable in the entire Omnicom portfolio. For clients like Mars, Guinness, Pepsi, Barcadi, the agency is adept at building long-running platforms for major global brands.

  In the post-merger world, where clients will be wary of disruption, BBDO offers Omnicom:

  • stability

  • proven stewardship of global brands

  • a track record of linking creativity to long-term business growth

  This makes BBDO an essential tool in Omnicom’s effort to retain and expand relationships across its newly expanded portfolio of clients. The network is trusted by CMOs, procurement teams and global marketing organisations alike.

• A Scaled Infrastructure Perfectly Suited to Absorb FCB

  The logic behind folding the FCB network into BBDO is straightforward: BBDO already has the systems, processes, leadership structure and global distribution to integrate a major network quickly and without fragmentation.

  BBDO’s operating model is engineered for scale - central leadership teams, globally aligned capabilities, and a network of strong regional hubs. Absorbing FCB allows Omnicom to:

  • consolidate overlapping capabilities,

  • simplify the global brand architecture, and

  • create a single, super-scaled creative network capable of competing with the likes of WPP’s Ogilvy and Publicis’ Leo. In a holding-company environment that rewards simplicity and scale, BBDO is the natural home for FCB’s footprint.

• A Creative Philosophy That Aligns With Omnicom’s Future Strategy

  “The Work. The Work. The Work.” is not just a slogan. It reflects a cultural philosophy that values creativity as a business lever — a perfect match for Omnicom’s post-merger push to simplify and supercharge its creative offering.

  BBDO’s culture of craft, discipline and creative quality gives Omnicom exactly what it needs now:

  • a clear creative identity

  • a network that values effectiveness as much as shelf-life creativity

  • a talent culture that is more stable and less politically volatile than many peers

  • leadership teams that understand global operational complexity

  As Omnicom integrates IPG and resets its creative posture, BBDO becomes the network that can articulate - and deliver - the company’s renewed belief in creativity as an engine of growth.

  • AMV BBDO Remains One of the UK’s Most Influential Creative Agencies

    Even in a shifting London market, AMV BBDO continues to be one of the UK’s most powerful creative forces - a shop that combines craft, cultural storytelling, and commercial effectiveness at scale.

    In the last couple of years Xavier Rees and his team of CSO Jo Arden, creative chiefs Nick Hulley and Nadja Lossgott, and chief growth officer Jemima Monies, have been rebuilding the agency's confidence and purpose.

    Meanwhile, work for brands like Libresse/Bodyform, Currys, Guinness, and Mars has positioned AMV at the forefront of purpose-led creativity, the highest visual craft, and IP-based brand building. Projects such as '#WombStories' have travelled globally and influenced creative standards across the BBDO network.

    Omnicom knows that London is still one of the most important creative hubs in the world. Having AMV as a flagship - and absorbing FCB’s UK footprint - gives BBDO renewed scale, fresh client opportunities, and a deeper talent pool in a critical market. The indomitable Katy Wright, FCB's CEO, now takes on the role of chief client officer at AMV.

    But we couldn’t let this moment pass without a full-throated shoutout to Wright's team at FCB London, including CCO Owen Lee and CSO Ben Jaffe.

    The agency has really flourished in the last few years, with an engagingly fresh energy and conviction, underpinned by a real depth of proven experience and passion. The crew were instrumental in securing the fiercely coveted NatWest account for IPG earlier this year and can take some small comfort from knowing they are shuttering agency at the top of their game.

  Conclusion

  In the new Omnicom universe, BBDO stands out for its global consistency, effectiveness record, and scale.

  With AMV BBDO anchoring the UK and a revitalised global footprint ahead, BBDO is poised to emerge from the merger not merely intact, but enlarged and strategically elevated - a cornerstone of Omnicom’s ambition to build a simpler, stronger and more creatively assertive global group.