The Reimagining of 99
In the world of retail advertising, there has been a race to the bottom with an over-reliance on price, sales and discounts. With that as a background, Graham Medcalf takes a look at how 99 is showing a surprising turnaround and rediscovering the mojo that was apparent in the giddy heights of 2011.
So, what is it that is different about 99 today? Yes, there has been a change at the top, with Troy Fuller replacing Paul Manning a year ago, and there has been a change in creative leadership with Mick Stalker replacing Craig Whitehead.
Fuller is a new breed of agency leader with a proven track record, having guided Raydar to commercial success. While Stalker returns to the Clemenger Group, having previously been deputy creative director at Colenso BBDO, where he spent 10 years building an impressive reputation.
But there have also been a number of other recent appointments that have shored up the agency’s intellectual power base: Dan Bye – group director of strategy, Nicola Henshaw – experience planning director, Greg Forsyth – group director of operations and Danielle Barclay – director of experience design to name just a few.
The reality is, the culture of 99 has changed and, “the engagement of staff has been incredible,” Fuller says.
“You get the sense that our people are feeling they are part
