M+C Saatchi Group
International advertising agency network
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
M+C Saatchi Group (LSE: SAA) is a global creative solutions company and the world’s largest independent creative network.[1] They connect specialist expertise, powered by creativity, data and technology, to help build famous brands, solve the most complex business and societal challenges, and create and curate Cultural Power for our clients.
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| LSE: SAA | |
| Industry | Advertising |
| Founded | May 1995 |
| Founder | Maurice Saatchi, Charles Saatchi, Jeremy Sinclair, Bill Muirhead, David Kershaw |
| Headquarters | London, London |
Number of locations | 22 |
Area served | Americas, APAC (Asia Pacific), Europe, Middle East and South Africa |
Key people | Zaid Al-Qassab (Global CEO) |
| Revenue | The Group generated LFL £231.4 million of net revenue in 2024. |
Number of employees | 2003 (2700 including Licensees) |
| Website | www |
Headquartered in London, operations span 22 countries with major hubs in the UK, US, Europe, Asia Pacific, Middle East and Africa.
M&C Saatchi plc is listed on the AIM Market of the London Stick Exchange
In May 2022, Next 15 Group PLC tried to buy M&C Saatchi Group PLC for $387.2 million.[1]
History
M+C Saatchi Group began as an advertising agency in 1995, founded by Maurice & Charles Saatchi, Jeremy Sinclair, Bill Muirhead and David Kershaw, in a split from Saatchi & Saatchi. A number of Saatchi & Saatchi's London management and creative staff also joined. Some clients soon followed, including Gallaher Group, Mirror Newspapers, the retailer Dixons and after a competitive pitch, British Airways and its part subsidiary Qantas, as well as the Conservative Party, for whom they made the infamous New Labour, New Danger adverts. By early 1996, the network consisted of offices in London, Singapore, Hong Kong, Sydney, New York and Auckland.[2] In 2020, the group stated that it operated in 24 countries, with regional offices in London, New York, Milan, Cape Town, Sydney and Singapore.[3]
In 2019, some accounting errors from previous financial years were discovered. Problems included the early recognition of revenue for projects not fully completed and the capitalising of assets which ought to have been expensed. The issues were brought to the attention of the PLC directors and an announcement was made that charges of £6.4M would be booked in the 2019 year relating to either 2018 or 2019.[4] PricewaterhouseCoopers were appointed as independent advisors to review and confirm findings.[5] In December 2019, the Board announced the total charges would in fact be £11.6M.[5] The company's original auditor KPMG resigned earlier in 2019.[5]
It was reported that the agency's client, the Financial Conduct Authority – Britain's financial watchdog - issued a formal request for information to examine M+C Saatchi's disclosure of the accounting problems which prompted the share price fall.[6]
In January 2021, the founders of the agency stepped down and Moray MacLennan became the new Global CEO.[7] In January 2021, M+C Saatchi Group hosted a virtual capital markets event for institutional investors and analysts, where they announced a new strategy and operating model.[8] The new mantra 'We Navigate, Create and Lead Meaningful Change' was launched, described by MacLennan as a 'new chapter' for M+C Saatchi.[9] Following this launch and announcement of positive financial results, the M+C Saatchi plc share price rallied, jumping from 90p to 150p in early March 2021.[10]
In July 2023, M+C Saatchi announced that Global CEO Moray MacLennan would step down. On the 13th May 2024, Zaid Al-Qassab, former CMO of Channel 4, joined as Global CEO.
On the 18th of March 2025, M+C Saatchi Group unveiled Cultural Power Index and a new brand identity. Cultural Power is the advantage M+C Saatchi creates for its clients, helping them harness cultural forces to fuel desire, drive demand and deliver brand growth. At the heart of the launch is the Cultural Power Index, a proprietary AI-powered, diagnostic tool that helps brands drive growth by harnessing the power of culture.
Board
The M+C Saatchi Board as of March 9th, 2026, comprises of Dame Heather Rabbatts (Non-Executive Chair and incoming Interim Executive Chair), Simon Fuller (Chief Financial Officer), Colin Jones (Non-Executive Director), Georgina Harvey (Non-Executive Director), Chris Sweetland (Non-Executive Director), Vinodka Murria (Non-Executive Director), and Nicholas Shott (Non-Executive Director)
Awards
M+C Saatchi Group and its regional offices have received numerous industry awards and recognitions for creative excellence, effectiveness, media, PR, and brand marketing.
2025
- Silver Lion (PR, Research, Data & Analytics), Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity, M+C Saatchi Australia, 2025.[11]
- Yellow Pencil and Wood Pencil, D&AD Awards, M+C Saatchi Australia, 2025.[12]
- Gold, South Asia Specialist Agency of the Year; Silver, Southeast Asia Best Agency–Client Partnership (with Grab), Campaign Asia Awards, M+C Saatchi Performance, 2025.[13]
- Multiple category wins including Best Reels for Brand & Performance, Meta Reels Impact Awards, M+C Saatchi Performance, 2025.[14]
- Multiple regional APAC winners including Data Insights / Contextual Marketing (Grab), SMARTIES MMA Awards, M+C Saatchi Performance, 2025.[15]
- Excellence in Marketing Innovation with Grab, Marketing Excellence Awards (Indonesia), M+C Saatchi Performance, 2025.[16]
- Bronze Award, Creator/Influencer Partnerships (*Where Legendary Lives* for Aquaventure), Dubai Lynx International Festival of Creativity, M+C Saatchi Middle East, 2025.[17]
- Agency of the Year; Social Purpose/Charity Sponsorship (*Barclays Community Football Fund*); Best Sponsor of the Last 30 Years (O2), UK Sponsorship Awards, M+C Saatchi S&E London, 2025.[18]
- Green, Silver, Bronze Pencils (*The Plastic Forecast*), The One Show, M+C Saatchi Australia, 2025.[19]
- Best Overall Brand Identity (*MYOB – Solo*), Campaign India Awards, M+C Saatchi Consulting (Re), 2025.[20]
- Loeries 2025: Bronze, Standard Bank; Finalists, The Up & Up Group, MTN South Africa, Hivos, AdvTech, M+C Saatchi Abel & M+C Saatchi UK Agency, 2025.[21]
2024
- Silver PR Lion, Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity, M+C Saatchi Australia, 2024.[22]
- Silver and Bronze, Effie Awards – UK & Australia, *Come and Say G’day*, M+C Saatchi Group AUNZ, 2024.[23]
- Bronze Creative Effectiveness, Clio Sports Awards, *Pit Stop Wedding*, M+C Saatchi Sport & Entertainment North America, 2024.[24]
- Winner, Multi‑Format Storytelling, YouTube Works Awards (Singapore), M+C Saatchi Performance, 2024.[25]
- OOH and Digital Out-of-Home, The Drum Awards, *Australian Redcross Lifeblood – Blood Supply*, M+C Saatchi AUNZ, 2024.[26]
- Dynamic & Interactive Digital Screens, Transform Awards, M+C Saatchi AUNZ, 2024.[27]
- Best Creative Strategy (Consumer) (*Vanity Fair Lingerie*), Winner; Use of Social Media & Influencers (*Business Iceland – Love Iceland*), Bronze, LIA Awards, M+C Saatchi Consulting & SS+K, 2024.[28]
- Effie Awards Australia – multiple Silver & Bronze including *Tourism Australia – Come & Say G’day*, *Australian Retirement Trust*, *Steggles*, M+C Saatchi AUNZ & Abel, 2024.[29]
2023
- Start‑up Agency of the Year, Campaign, Fluency, 2023.[30]
- Agency of the Year, UK Sponsorship Awards, M+C Saatchi Sport & Entertainment, 2023.[31]
- SS+K named one of the “10 Most Innovative Companies in Advertising”, Fast Company, 2023.[32]
- Marketing Interactive Agency of the Year Awards Malaysia: Creative Agency of the Year (Gold), Independent Agency of the Year (Silver), Agency Team of the Year (Silver), Best Agency–Client Partnership (Silver), M+C Saatchi Malaysia, 2023.[33]
- Marketing/Advertising Agency of the Year, American Business Awards, M+C Saatchi Performance US, 2022.
2022 and Previous
- The American Business Awards, Marketing or Advertising Agency of the Year M+C Saatchi Performance US 2022.[34]
- Campaign Media, Performance Marketing Agency of the Year Bronze, 2022.
- Agency of the Year Campaign Awards, M+C Saatchi Indonesia, 2021.[35]
- Agency of the Decade, NC Digital Awards, M+C Saatchi Milano, 2021.[36]
- Most Innovative Company, Australian Financial Review Awards, M+C Saatchi Australia Group, 2017, 2019.[37]
- Agency of the Decade, Mobile Marketing Effectiveness Awards, M+C Saatchi Performance (formerly known as M+C Saatchi Mobile), 2020.[38]
- Large Agency of the Year, FM Adfocus Awards, M+C Saatchi Abel, 2019.[39]
- Agency of the Year, BT Sport Industry Awards, M+C Saatchi Sport & Entertainment, 6 times winners.[40]
- Leading Consultants, Financial Times, Clear M+C Saatchi, 2017–21.[41]
- Large Consultancy of the Year, UK Sponsorship Awards, M+C Saatchi Sport & Entertainment, 2019.[40]
- Most Effective Media Agency The Drum, M+C Saatchi Performance, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018.[42]
- Digital Agency of the Year, The DADI Awards, M+C Saatchi Performance, 2016.[42]
- Consultancy of the Year, PR Week, M+C Saatchi PR, 2017.[43]
- Agency of the Year, Campaign Asia-Pacific, M+C Saatchi Australia Group, 2015.[44]
- Creative Talent Management Agency of the Year, Business Excellence Awards from Acquisition International Magazine, M+C Saatchi Merlin, 2014.[45]
Work-Specific Awards include:
- Bronze Cannes Lions, The Impossible drive, Lego, 2025
- Silver PR Cannes Lion, Plastic Forecast for Minderoo Foundation 2024
- SABRE Awards EMEA, Best Reputation Work - 500 Tonnes Light: Grand Prix winner 2023.[46]
- Lynx Awards Grand Prix, Film, Grand Prix winner, Grand Prix - Film Craft, Grand Prix winner, Film Craft – Direction, Silver, Film – Script, Silver for As good as the original campaign and Film Craft - Use of Original Music, Loyalty, Bronze and World Cup, Bronze Film - Online Film campaign, 2023.[47]
- LA Film Festival, Best Animation Short Tourism Australia - Come & Say G'Day, 2023.[48]
- UK Sponsorship Awards: Women's Sport Sponsorship Award, Heineken, Cheers to All Fans Winner, Brand Sponsorship, Heineken, Cheers to All Fans, Winner, Sponsorship of the Year, Heineken, Cheers to All Fans, Winner, UKSA Spotlight Award - drinks sector (no entries, picked by UKSA), Heineken, Cheers to All Fans, Winner, International Sponsorship Award, Heineken x F1 - When you Drive Never Drink 2022, Winner, Best social purpose, community or charity sponsorship, Barclays, It all starts with a chance, Winner, Sport Sponsorship, O2, Wear the rose, Winner, 2023.[31]
- The One Show Social Media: Stunts & Activations Business Iceland Outhorse your email, Gold 2023.[49]
- US Effies, Talk/SS+K, Travel & Tourism (Silver), Current Events (Silver) and small budget (Bronze) for Business Iceland Icelandverse campaign 2023.[50]
- The ABBY Awards - Animation - Video Craft, U GRO Capital - FUND ISLAND (Gold), Special effects U GRO Capital FUND ISLAND (Silver), Reliance Jewels, MAHALAYA: Celebrating Grace & Glory, (Silver) and Reliance Jewels, RANNKAAR (Bronze) 2023.[51]
- The ANDY's - Craft Idea: Business Iceland - Outhorse your email, winner SS+K 2023.[52]
- Effies Awards, Golds in: David vs. Goliath, Travel & Tourism and Small Budgets - Services, for 'Looks Like You Need to Let It Out' for Promote Iceland, 2021.[53]
- PR Week Awards, Winner Global Integration, Looks Like You Need To Let it Out' for Promote Iceland, 2021.[54]
- Fast Company World Changing Idea, 'The Street Store' for Haven Shelter, 2020.[55]
- D&AD Graphite Pencil – 'rightmyname' for Nandos, M+C Saatchi Abel, 2019.[56]
- APG Creative Strategy Award, Long-Term Thinking, 'Change4Life' for PHE, 2019.[57]
- Loeries Grand Prix, 'Afrotising' for Nando's.[58]
- Cannes Lions Titanium Lion Wood Pencil, 'Clever Buoy' for Optus, 2015.[59]
- IPA Effectiveness Award, 'Be Clear on Cancer' for PHE, 2014.[60]
- BAFTA, Best Comedy and Entertainment Show, for A League of their Own, 2014.[61]
- IPA Effectiveness Award, London 2012 Olympics Campaign, 2012.[62]