Rob Doubal and Laurence Thomson have spent twelve years at McCann UK, joining as executive creative directors before moving up to become joint chief creative officers. Now they have quit to join M&C Saatchi as global joint CCOs, ending a global search by the agency since September last year. They will take up their new positions later this year.
Doubal (above left) and Thomson (above right) (aka “Rob and Lolly”) joined McCann London in 2012 from Wieden & Kennedy London. They became regional CCOs across the UK in 2019. The pair teamed up initially at Mother, when Doubal joined the agency in 2006. They spent the next four years there.
Over the last two decades, they have delivered campaigns for brands including Xbox, Just Eat, Microsoft, Aldi, and Sky, and have overseen work that has won more than 100 Cannes Lions and over 800 awards from major international shows.
The pair described M&C Saatchi as “an agency with one the most famous names in advertising history and a legacy of creative brilliance A truly iconic brand with some fantastic offices around the world.
“Driving fame and commerce by leveraging art and creativity is what we love to do and joining the new team with a shared ambition to make M&C Saatchi a global powerhouse with creativity at its core got us very excited.”
M&C executive chair, Zillah Byng-Thorne, commented, “Their creative vision combines with a passion for doing the best for clients, and I expect them to make a huge cultural impact on all parts of the M&C Saatchi Group, which will produce world-class creativity and business results.”
Incoming group CEO, Zaid Al-Qassab, commented, “I was wowed by Rob and Lolly’s passion for innovation and commitment to creative excellence throughout the recruitment process. Their unique way of looking at the world, and track record of success with iconic and category disrupting campaigns, will undoubtedly drive transformative results for our clients,” he said.
Meanwhile, global chief executive of McCann Worldgroup, Daryl Lee, recruited Javier Campopiano as global chief creative officer and Regan Warner as executive creative director at McCann London last year. McCann UK is now undergoing its CCO search.
McCann said in a statement that Doubal and Thomson, “leave a great creative legacy here at McCann and they have had a great run… They developed a strong internal creative culture here in London and the UK, and we thank them for their indelible creative impact on clients, the business and our people. We wish Rob and Lolly our best in their next venture.”
