Grey London: All Set and Raring to go

Just over one year has passed since Conrad Persons joined as president of Grey London. Having instigated a reboot at the agency, he tells Creative Salon that he has much to be excited about Grey's last 12 months.

Conrad Persons, president of Grey London, on the agency's 2024

What have been the major business highlights of 2024?

We brought in some very bright minds from the world of social, some creative teams with mischievous, earned-first books, and a new head of data – Eric Shapiro – who is ex-Google and who’ll chew your ear off on everything from tech trends to omakase. 

We made an enviable body of work for our existing clients which is as diverse as it is unexpected - from a fan-centric relaunch of Sky Bet to wildlife documentary for Coca-Cola. We made a delightfully macabre cartoon musical for PETA as well as a heartwarming piece of work for Vodafone with Aftersun director Charlotte Wells. Collaborating with Rankin on work for Aquafresh that celebrated kids’ perfectly imperfect smiles was a moment as well.

The best part of this year is something that’s hard to measure but impossible not to feel – a sense of confidence and optimism in the agency. We are now in possession of that rarest of things – momentum – and we are biting at the chomp for the year ahead.

What has been your proudest achievement of the past 12 months?

In 2024 – through a mix of hard work, bravery, sheer audacity, creativity, and luck – we managed to win every pitch we participated in. Pitching is a flawed process – as has been well documented. But it has its merits too. And one of those is its ability to bring people closely together. You burn through late nights, bad pizza, delirium, and reams of bad jokes – and at the end you’d walk through a wall for the closely-knit team you’ve built. When a team is in this pressure cooker environment– you learn a lot about yourself, and the business. For all the travails, for all its costs – the rewards of winning have not only been commercial, but in many ways cultural too. Winning is infectious – and while it may not fix everything, it fixes a lot. We’ve got a bounce in our step heading into the new year.

What are you most looking forward to next year?

The work, the work, the work. We have a long list of projects currently in production, and our pipeline of work for next year is primed to be both famous and effective.  What I love about the work we have is that it’s about solving problems, not making ads – next year will see us do everything from reimaging the airline experience to persuading the UK to embrace net zero. 

This was my first year at the helm of Grey London. And there are any number of things a new leader needs to do in those first 12 months. But in the end, we are here for the work, and 2025 is primed to produce a wonderful yield of creative opportunities. With (the lovely) David Wigglesworth leaving to take on a coveted in-house role at Channel 4, we are also going to be introducing a new CCO imminently – and I can’t wait to make the work of a lifetime with them soon.

What do you feel have been the greatest industry challenges for agencies this year and why?

There is a lot of pressure on agencies’ business model. And a lot of pressure from within – and without – to contribute to our clients’ growth. And a cocktail of global headwinds too. How do you ensure that these pressures don’t lead to timidity? To a ‘play-it-safe’ attitude? To yet more ‘meh’ content in a sea of sameness? How, instead, do we use it as fuel to make creative that’s fierce, brave, unexpected, distinctive – and most importantly, that works?

Has the addition of any AI solution made the profound impact that was expected? If so – what?

We were fortunate enough to bring in three creative technologists this year. They are part of a wider program – called Hex – that takes hyper talented people from underrepresented backgrounds and trains them in all things AI. They did everything from create VR content to build products to generate earned ideas. They brought unusual talent, verve, and a radically fresh perspective to the studio. They are my AI ‘story of the year’ – not an app, a tool, or a program – but human talent that serve as a pleasant reminder of two facts: firstly, that AI’s potential is extraordinary, but secondly that AI is a means to an end – and that end is creativity.

What one change would you most like to see happen in the ad industry next year?

I hope that in the midst of very real pressures, high ambition, and a commitment to performing at the absolutely highest levels…. That we don’t forget that this business can be a joy. 2024 has been hard – and the narrative around our industry can be dour. I hope we do more to celebrate each other and lift both ourselves and our work up. 

Creative Salon on Grey London’s 2024

Grey London spent much of 2024 reshuffling its pack following the arrival of Conrad Persons as president in October last year.

Among the hirings were Monty Verdi, who joined as group creative director from T&Pm where he was creative director, and Lindsay Macintyre as head of growth, having previously worked at agencies including VCCP and Havas. Eric Shapiro also joined as director of data strategy from Google where he was insights planner.

Faces to go the other way through the revolving door included strategy director Jesper Norgaard who set sail for TBWA\London and ECD David Wigglesworth who departed for Channel 4. 

Nonetheless, the agency continued to create some distinctive work and won all the pitches it decided to take part in. With 2024 providing the 'summer of sport', Grey produced a range of content around the Euros for Sky Bet. 

An initial focus with its ‘For The Fans’ campaign put football lovers at the forefront whereby the long-term brand strategy shifted from focusing on the betting experience and instead prioritising the modern fan experience.

In doing so, it aimed to cancel out the tropes of betting culture and foster a meaningful connection with its audience that went beyond offers and short-term tactics. 

Before the tournament kicked off, Grey London released ‘Tournament Turmoil’, building upon the ‘For the Fans’ strategy. The campaign launched its first ad in the series named ‘Trim’, which delved into the inner conflicts football fans experience in having to put rivalries aside when it comes to supporting their home nation in major tournaments.

The second ad in the campaign ‘Dad’s Dad’ aimed to recognise the difficulties fans face when having to support players they usually hate during the season because they are representing England at the Euros - with a particular focus on the Manchester 'red vs blue' debate.

Away from football, Grey and Weber Shandwick produced work for Corona Cero for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. The campaign ‘Golden Venues’ invited fans to connect with nature during the Games, as part of Corona Cero’s ‘For Every Golden Moment Platform’. The work highlighted 11 different golden venues to enjoy a Corona during golden hour, from Battersea in London to Rio de Janeiro in Brazil. 

Grey also worked on the creative strategy and concept behind beauty brand M.A.C’s collaboration with paint company Lick to change the perceptions around shades of make up - specifically in black. The limited edition paint, M.A.C Black 40, celebrated black as the ultimate colour for self-expression as well as M.A.C’s 40th anniversary. 

Its work with Vodafone Ireland produced a heartwarming tale about the power of connection, playing off the back of Vodafone’s belief that every connection has the power to create positive difference in people’s lives. The TV ad saw a mother returning to cycling after a long hiatus and despite her struggles with keeping the pace, received a message from her daughter, giving her the spirit to continue.

Creative Salon says… This year was about setting the foundations for future growth. The final piece of the jigsaw - the new CCO - is due to be announced imminently, and momentum should gather pace with bigger wins in its sights.