Consider this: according to Scopen’s 2024 New Business Report (via Bizcommunity), South Africa alone saw 45 new agency pitches last year. That’s a powerful signal of client dissatisfaction.
And the people powering this industry? Many are opting out of the agency world entirely.
Independent talent collectives are thriving. Abstract Club currently has 38 senior media professionals on their books (up 30% from 2020), while the unofficial “Strategy Girls” group consists of 25 digital strategists operating as freelancers.
At the same time, agencies are struggling to hire fresh talent—and many of the brilliant minds I’ve worked with for decades are burning out or walking away.
For someone like me, who consults independently, it’s a busy time. But it’s also heartbreaking.
When I started, fresh from AAA School of Advertising, the industry was simpler.
Today, the pace and scale of change are exhilarating. The number of media channels has exploded.
Technology gives us real-time insights and the ability to deliver personalised messaging at scale. And consumers are no longer just audiences—they’re participants, curators, and vocal co-creators of brand experiences.
This should be the golden age of marketing. And yet, I believe that our agency models haven’t kept pace.
Creative and media still operate in silos. Global networks are answerable to shareholders, often on other continents.
And the industry’s “North Star” is often efficiency and cost-cutting, rather than great work and client success.
I’m not alone in feeling this. Industry leaders like Kamran Asghar, founder of Crossmedia (New York), and Ivan Fernandes, a marketing & media M&A specialist in the EMEA region, are openly challenging the status quo.
Their calls for integrated thinking, client-focused delivery, and human-first agency models deeply resonate with me.
A recent example of this sentiment is the launch of the independent agency Studio One led by Ajaz Ahmed, founder of AKQA in London, who recently exited the WPP group.
He claims that his new independent agency is aimed at challenging traditional agency models, offering more flexibility, innovation and agility, an attractive alternative to large, bureaucratic organisations.
It got me thinking: If I ever stepped back into agency life, what would that agency look like?
As Fernandes aptly puts it, “A strategically aligned, commercially sound, and human-first agency ecosystem.” That, to me, is an agency worth building.
Am I alone in thinking this way? Or are more of us ready to reimagine what the industry in South Africa could be?
