BBDO made some big moves last year—and now is the time to see if they will pay off.

The Omnicom Group agency saw two of the biggest executive changes in the industry when longtime creative leader and Global Chief Creative Officer David Lubars announced plans to retire, and Global CEO and President Andrew Robertson moved into a chairman role after 20 years.

A new duo, Chris Beresford-Hill, chief creative officer of BBDO Worldwide, and Nancy Reyes, CEO of BBDO Worldwide, were appointed to usher in the next era of the agency, which was formed officially through a merger in 1928 and has roots dating to 1891. Their progress could determine how the 7,000-person agency network will fit within the framework of the pending merger of Omnicom and Interpublic Group of Cos. 

BBDO is one of the last legacy agencies still standing and has continued to win creative awards, especially through standout offices such as AlmapBBDO in Brazil. However, in recent years it has felt like the agency— known for iconic work such as Snickers’ “You’re Not You When You’re Hungry” and Burger King’s “Have it Your Way” jingle—wasn’t putting out the level of work that made it famous.

Since starting their respective roles last year, Reyes and Beresford-Hill spent time learning more about BBDO. The two found that the shop was approaching work in a “safe” way, Reyes said in a February interview.

To combat that and what Beresford-Hill said is a growing “insecurity” among creative agencies in the industry, the two recently launched a new global repositioning. 

“It feels like advertising ... has tried to invent new products or redefine what we do, or invent capabilities that are not really in our core competency,” Beresford-Hill said. “The safety to do the best thing possible is going to be our competitive advantage. The insecurity is the opportunity. Our belief is when the pressure is on if we swing bigger, that's how we're going to break through.”

Are these moves enough for BBDO to reclaim its renowned status?  Last year certainly had signs that BBDO could be on its way.

Last year, the agency secured more than 200 new business wins, including Amazon, LIV Golf, Genentech and Mercedes F1. It also rejoined Pepsi's roster, renewing a relationship from which it split in 2016. Before that, Pepsi and BBDO worked together for 48 years. BBDO also won multiple global agency-of-record brands within Kenvue’s portfolio.

The creative was also strong, as evidenced by Pedigree’s AI-powered “Adoptable” out-of-home ads for shelter dogs. 

Colenso BBDO in New Zealand created 3D models of individual dogs that could be updated in real time in out-of-home ads. The push used first-party data and geo-targeting to match breeds to the locations and households that suited them best. When a featured dog was adopted, it instantly dropped out of media rotation.

As a result, 50% of shelter dogs featured were adopted in the first two weeks and there was a sixfold increase in traffic to the shelter featured, BBDO said. The campaign also won a Grand Prix in Outdoor at the Cannes Lions Festival of Creativity.

BBDO LA brought excitement to a simple B2B brief from AT&T targeted at small business owners. AT&T’s “Sleep with Rain”  campaign focused on actor Rainn Wilson launching a gag company that sold a pillow with speakers that people could use to fall asleep to the sound of his voice.

Wilson, who played Dwight Schrute in “The Office,” reunited with other members of the cast for the campaign. The film exceeded more than 50 million views across multiple platforms, with a 99% social sentiment score, according to the agency.

To emphasize that all food tastes better with Pepsi, BBDO New York launched “Pepsi Chase Cars” which showed Pepsi cars following pizza delivery vehicles around L.A. to hand out a complimentary Pepsi with each pie delivered. The campaign reached more than 12 million views on TikTok in the first few days of launch and captured nearly 300 million earned PR impressions, the shop said.

AlmapBBDO also won a Cannes Lions Music Grand Prix for its Johnnie Walker campaign that brought attention to Alaíde Costa, a foundational figure of Bossa Nova who was historically overlooked due to systemic biases.

So too is BBDO looking to change its own history with new leaders and strategies. The industry will be watching.