Uncommon Creative Studio, which bagged this year’s coveted UK Creative Agency of the Year prize, has also been named this year’s Independent Agency of the Year, an accolade it previously won in 2020.
With eight shortlisted agencies across a mix of disciplines, judges had a tough time choosing the winner. They said Uncommon stood out for its consistently strong work, its impressive reel, a good set of results and entrepreneurial mindset. They said: “Uncommon continues to bring in an energy to how they work, with creative provocation in everything they make.”
In 2021, the agency won over 20 new projects, including one of the most significant UK creative pitches of the year for British Airways’ global creative & CRM business (against WPP), and it achieved significant growth in revenue and turnover.
Uncommon also expanded its headcount from 65 to 95 people, bolstered by a network of more than 300 freelancers and backed an accelerator programme that aims to help start-ups with purpose grow. The initiative, called Unrest, offers new businesses up to 16 weeks and more than 161 hours of support from industry experts.
Uncommon’s campaigns across 2021 included one for Twinings called ‘Alive in every drop’, devised to promote a new wellness tea range and showcase the brand's place in modern British culture and an integrated campaign for home and personal care brand Method, with the sustainability message that everyone has the power to create change.
Uncommon continued to invest in diversity, tripling its BAME representation since 2019 to 15% and reaching 60% female representation at management level and 51% overall.
Silver: Pablo London
Pablo London has been an agency in the ascendant for the past few years and 2021 was no exception. In April, it scooped one of the UK’s biggest ad accounts when it won DFS and it also secured a coveted place on the compressed government agency roster. Its debut campaign for DFS showcased the furniture retailer’s new brand platform, designed to emphasise and celebrate differences in individual taste and style. The independent creative agency also developed a global brand platform for Deliveroo, highlighting its credentials as an on-demand food company.
The agency continued to give up its office space to donate the money to those more in need of a home through its partnership with Shelter and it also introduced an unlimited holiday policy, aimed at helping people who were anxious about taking time off.
Bronze: PrettyGreen
PrettyGreen launched a standalone influencer division called What They Said, and executed a number of creative and commercially impactful campaigns for household brands such as Play-Doh, Monopoly, NERF and Cluedo. The agency put business development at the forefront of its company culture, with the whole business rewarded for their input in winning. The communications shop also made a conscious decision to only work with recruitment companies who have a strong D&I policy.
Shortlisted:
Creature
In 2021, Creature celebrated its tenth anniversary. It doubled in size and won some of its biggest clients in a decade, including homewares retailer Dunelm. Notable campaigns included launching a new brand platform for Moonpig and the agency also delivered results for Clearscore, Dogs Trust, Motorpoint and eve Sleep.
Impero
Impero won 11 clients and devised campaigns for Chivas, Budweiser, George at Asda, Paco Rabanne and Fibre One. It focused on its people, creating a new recruitment strategy that put the emphasis on finding candidates from under-represented communities or those who haven’t followed the usual path into the industry.
Mother London
In 2021, the agency picked up 25 new clients and there was a continuing shift from retained client relationships to a more project-based environment. Mother London invested considerable amounts in its people - from rolling over all 2020 untaken holidays to absorbing exceptional staffing costs, helping employees manage pandemic challenges.
St Luke’s Communications
St Luke’s launched a new brand agenda for Ocado, and challenged itself to reach a 113% growth target in 2021 from new clients and organic growth, delivering on this and more. It also introduced a childcare policy that offers staff with young children a monthly cash benefit to help with childcare costs for the first three years after maternity or paternity leave.
VCCP
For VCCP, 2021 has marked a year of reinvention. It launched the VCCP Stoke Academy to recruit diverse talent and released debut work for the most talked-about telecom merger of 2021, Virgin Media and O2. The campaign launched Volt, a premium broadband and mobile network service, with a film visualising its benefits.
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