BBH USA has appointed Jane Cronk and Ricardo Franco as executive creative directors, and added two promotions to enhance its creative leadership lineup. Both Cronk and Franco will serve across BBH USA’s portfolio of clients, with Franco focusing on the agency’s global Samsung team. They both joined at the start of November in the New York office November and will report to chief creative officer, Erica Roberts.
The hires follow a year of growth for BBH USA, that continues to place creativity at the forefront of its many strengths.
In addition to the new hires, Peter Defries and Alan Wilson, will be elevated to executive creative directors from SVP, group creative directors. Since joining BBH USA in 2023, Defries and Wilson have overseen creative for PSOne, Publicis Groupe’s Power of One solution for The J.M. Smucker Co. Both have been named D&AD’s Top 20 executive creative directors and have earned over 30 awards for the J.M. Smucker Co. portfolio, including a Cannes Gold Lion.
“Inspiring and prolific ECDs who are willing to roll up their sleeves, elevate the work, and champion other ambitious creatives are a rare breed,” stated Erica Roberts. “Needless to say, I’m beyond excited to welcome four of the best to our flock – Jane Cronk and Ricardo Franco, along with the elevation of our very own Peter Defries and Alan Wilson. I can’t wait to have Jane, Ricardo, Pete, and Al, together with Estefanio Holtz at the helm of this BBH’s next chapter, further accelerating our incredible creative momentum.”
Cronk joins from Anomaly, where she served as group creative director. While working at creative agencies 72andSunny, Young & Rubicam, and the community, she gained global experience collaborating with brands such as LG, Sonos, Google, Chipotle, New York Life and Converse, where she earned her first Cannes Lions. In addition, she has received awards from The One Show, The Clios, D&AD, and The Webbies.
“I have long admired the BBH black sheep philosophy, innovative spirit, and dedication to shaking things up by zagging when others zig,” Cronk commented. “This is an incredible opportunity to partner with people I deeply respect and to drive results for iconic clients. Most importantly, it is clear to me that this is a flock of genuinely good people who want to make great work. Joining such a talented, hard-working, yet equally kind-hearted team is the perfect next chapter in my career. I can’t wait to see what we’ll do together.”
Originating from Brazil, Franco previously served as group creative director at DAVID Madrid. Over his career, he has been ranked fifth in both The World Creative Rankings as the most-awarded copywriter worldwide and as the most-awarded creative director globally by the Cannes Lions Creativity Report. His work with notable brands, including Coca-Cola, Netflix, Burger King, Kraft Heinz, Budweiser, and current BBH USA client Samsung, has led to gold wins at the Cannes Lions, D&AD, One Show, Clio, LIA, and ADC.
“In a time when people are paying to avoid ads, BBH’s philosophy to ‘zag when the world zigs’ has never been more relevant,” Franco stated. Add in an insanely talented team across all departments, and BBH is the perfect place to be. I can’t wait to work with our clients to solve their challenges with work that becomes part of the culture. I couldn’t be more excited to join the flock and help keep the incredible momentum going.”
