M&C Saatchi is boosting its integrated offering and strengthened its creative department following a period of growth and a series of new business wins, with the appointment of a senior creative from digital agency We Are Social.
Seth Jones takes up the role of creative director and will support creative partner Guy Bradbury and executive creative director Matt Lee as they strive to build a world-class creative department, working across all of the agency’s accounts and delivering “high-level brand thinking” as well as digital content and social-first campaigns.
With 18 years of agency experience, Jones has previously held senior roles at Elvis, AnalogFolk, TribalDDB and M&C Saatchi Sport & Entertainment.
At We Are Social, he held departmental responsibilities and overseeing work for clients including Lidl, Starbucks, First Direct, Pringles and Unilever. During three years at the agency, his most notable campaigns included Starbucks “It’s IRL Season”, Royal Opera House “New Worlds Await” and Lidl’s “Christmas Bear” social activations.
His other previous campaigns include Nike’s first ever TikTok activation, inspiring young women to play more sport; social and experiential activity for Nike’s Cannes Lions-winning “Nothing Beats A Londoner” campaign; Compassion in World Farming’s “Stop Live Exports” work, which picked up a Gold in the CBS Outdoor Awards; Virgin Trains “Fly Virgin Trains”; and the UK’s biggest ever streamed workout for Lucozade Sport.
Jones is the first in a series of planned new creative hires for M&C Saatchi this year, after seven appointments to the department in 2023.
The move follows M&C Saatchi’s appointment of Rob Doubal and Laurence (Lolly) Thomson as global joint chief creative officers, and other new hires including Zaid Al-Qassab as global CEO, Marcus Peffers as UK Group CEO, and Jo Bacon as UK CEO.
Guy Bradbury and Matt Lee said: “Seth is an incredible talent, and as we continue to build a world-class creative department to elevate creativity, he is a brilliant addition to the team. He brings outstanding social expertise and a wealth of experience on accounts including Nike, PepsiCo, Lucozade, Starbucks and Lidl. We can’t wait to unleash him on our clients.”
Jones added: “Brutal Simplicity of Thought has never been more important. In an age of overcomplicated strategies, vague ideas and marketing waffle, getting to the point seems like a lost art.
“I’ve always been inspired by M&C Saatchi’s philosophy, so I’m thrilled to be joining the creative agency.”
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