Why Iris Worldwide Believes Clients Must Participate or Perish

Iris Worldwide is undergoing a period of evolution. With its new UK CEO, Zoe Eagle, having joined last Autumn, alongside global chief creative officer, Menno Kluin, Eduardo Maruri as chief global creative chair, and executive creative director Katy Hopkins, the business is picking up momentum while introducing a new ethos, steeped in the unconventional.

Leading the way into the new era for the 26-year-old agency, which operates as an outsider from the ad establishment, is a new visual identity and positioning: ‘Participate or perish’. Described as “a creative imperative” for clients, the aim is to help the agency to show up in culture with work that stands apart from the humdrum fare from others.

Viewed as a response to client in-housing and network consolidation, the executives within Iris believe that the lines between client and agency are blurring, and the conditions under which work have become increasingly homogenised.

“This rebrand isn’t just about how we look. It’s a rallying cry for our people and our clients - a reminder that standing apart and moving culture requires a different kind of agency. One that leads with spirit and courage. That’s Iris,” outlines Eagle.

The branding also reasserts the agency’s identity as a “global creative micro-network” that it says is big enough to be dangerous while remaining small enough to stay creatively agile.

Deliberately developed to be a radical departure from its previous corporate identity, the new marque features a wild boar charging into the unknown, ridden by a horn-blowing figure, symbolising optimism, movement, and rallying leadership. Beneath it is the Latin motto: ‘Participa Aut Peri’.

It aims to relay the spirit of the agency, which continues to work with major clients such as Samsung, adidas, Bentley, Pizza Hut, Beiersdorf and Samsonite.

“The wild boar is our spirit animal,” explains Kluin. “Relentless, determined, and unafraid of the unknown. That’s always been Iris. We just hadn’t drawn it yet.”

To further explain the strategy behind its development process and what it means for the agency moving forward, Kluin spoke with Creative Salon, revealing some interesting insights about the next stages of the business.

Creative Salon: 'Participate or Perish' - what does the new visual identity say about the future direction of the agency and perhaps the wider advertising sector?

Menno Kluin: Do something ownable and try to stand out. Be part of communities and ride culture. And if you do all of these things, you will move behaviour. The future of the agency lies in doubling down on the spirit that made Iris great in the first place. Believing that earned goes further than paid and understanding that consumers hold the power and brands have to be invited in. Having a healthy focus on experimentation and exploration. Head first into the unknown, as we like to say.

The wider advertising sector is changing and it's great. What matters to us right now is to do great work that pushes the boundaries. Deliver the best possible thing we can do for our clients. Every single day.

CS: Talk about the work that went into the conceptualisation and development. How long did it take? How involved was Zoe [Eagle] and the new leadership team in the process?

MK: The idea started with some very local myths and legends, actually. And we wanted something that was somewhat traditional yet unhinged. Which surprisingly, came up a lot in employee surveys. The boar emerged relatively early on and people just became attached to it as a thing that they could relate to, and that was just too powerful to ignore. After that, we fully reworked the creds and built on the new base. Zoe Eagle, Ben Essen, and Jill Smith from the Americas helped push this forward. Brian Gartside, our brilliant global design lead, has of course, been instrumental in making it all come together. 

CS: Why introduce this now and move away from the previous long-standing positioning?

MK: We are actually doubling down on our positioning. It worked for us and we truly believe that our approach is the right one. What we are changing is the way we communicate and package it. Ben Essen, our global CSO, laid out the strategic philosophy of the agency over the 18 years that he has been with the company. And that is something that we are not changing. Why change a good thing? We just need to live up to it creatively, which is the mission.

CS: How will it be activated?

MK: We have been on a very lengthy and helpful roadshow to a lot of current clients to get input and feedback, which has been fantastic. What I’m particularly loving is that clients are getting involved in the fun. A big client from a rather large electronics brand now challenges us on if our ideas are worthy of the spirit of the board, which is exactly what it's intended to do. A bit of self-filtering on the type of work that Iris is known for. Setting the tone straight out of the gate. Expect exciting and interesting work whenever possible.

CS: The agency believes that more brands need to produce unconventional work that surprises to cut through. Why do you think the opposite has become the norm of late?

MK: I think because the industry is in a consensus game at the moment, and has crushed individual personality and expression. Where are the new Juan Cabrals? I would argue there have been none since him. Unconventional work requires unconventional thinkers and personalities. We have become like our clients and tried to match them in corporate, data, regulations, etc. And in that, we have lost our edge. Agencies were always supposed to deliver what the clients themselves could not. Counterintuitive thinking, creative expression and left-field solutions that are not obvious. If we go back to that - and there are definitely agencies out there that have - we will all be fine.

CS: What/how should people think about Iris from today? 

MK: Hopefully, that Iris is back to its legacy reputation, especially in London. ‘Outsider’ vibes that produce unexpected creative executions with ambition.