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One month from 2016 will undoubtedly stick in the minds of VCCP management for the sharp swing from low to high. In a dramatic move last April, Asda consolidated its creative and media accounts into Publicis Groupe agencies without a pitch. The retailer’s advertising business, which VCCP had handled since 2013, was its biggest loss of the year.

However, that same month, Transport for London appointed VCCP to its creative account after an intensive nine-month pitch process – a balm for the wound left by Asda’s departure.

The year continued to pick up after that. In May, VCCP expanded in the US by buying San Francisco-based agency Muhtayzik Hoffer. The shop hired former Saatchi & Saatchi New York creative chief Jay Benjamin and ex-Gotham president Nick Johnson in September to open a New York office. VCCP’s holding company, Chime Communications, plans to grow its non-UK business from about 30% to 50% of overall revenue within two years.

VCCP’s biggest win of 2016 came in October, when it was appointed as Canon’s first integrated agency. The shop replaced six incumbent agencies and will handle work including above-the-line advertising, PR, social, retail marketing and CRM.

Creative highlights included an upbeat easyJet campaign designed to inspire consumers after the gloomy events of 2016; a multimillion-pound brand refresh for O2 that dropped the "Be more dog" tagline; and authentic Nationwide ads featuring poets’ voices.

VCCP is increasingly positioning itself as a more integrated offering, particularly alongside VCCP Media, which won 13 pieces of business in 2016.

If 2017 is anywhere near as unpredictable as 2016, that strategy should stand VCCP in good stead.

How the agency describes its year in a tweet

2016 was a bit of an unpredictable one but we’ve gone out on a high. Thanks goes out as always to our clients for their continued support

Score key: 9 Outstanding 8 Excellent 7 Good 6 Satisfactory 5 Adequate 4 Below average 3 Poor 2 A year to forget 1 Survival in question