GUT, DDB and Omnicom win agency, network and most creative company of year at Cannes Lions 2023

GUT Buenos Aires won agency of the year, DDB Worldwide won network of the year and Omnicom won most creative company of the year at Cannes Lions.  

 

Victory for GUT is a coup for the five-year-old, Argentine independent agency, which won three top prizes. In addition to creative agency of the year, it was also awarded independent agency of the year and independent network of the year.

 

GUT won multiple Grands Prix. GUT Buenos Aires won the Grand Prix in Mobile for “World Cup delivery” for Pedidos Ya and took the Grand Prix in Creative Data for Stella Artois for “The Artois Probability”. GUT Los Angeles also picked up the PR Lions Grand Prix for Doordash for “Self-love bouquet”.

 

It is the first time that Argentina has won agency of the year at Cannes Lions. The GUT founders, who previously ran WPP-owned DAVID, launched their agency in 2018.

 

They vowed in an interview with Campaign US in 2019 that they wanted to “dream big” and win agency of the year at Cannes Lions “by 2023” — an ambition they have fulfilled in spectacular fashion.

 

DDB won network of the year, fuelled by the success of Adam & Eve/DDB London, whose work for Campaign Against Living Miserably on “The Last Photo” won the Film Grand Prix on the final evening.

 

DDB won more than 85 Lions, with “The Last Photo” picking up 11 Lions. Other wins included “Apologize the Rainbow” by DDB Chicago for Skittles and “Baby Scan” by Adam & Eve/ DDB for Marmite, which picked up two Gold Lions each.

 

Omnicom, the parent company of DDB and BBDO, which was the third most awarded ad agency, won most creative company of the year.

 

More than 120 agencies from 40 countries contributed to the title, with over 175 Lions won throughout the five-day festival.

 

John Wren, chairman and chief executive of Omnicom, said: “I am incredibly proud of how our agencies showed up this year.

 

“It’s always rewarding to see the hard work of our people across the globe recognized by Cannes Lions, the global benchmark for creative excellence.

 

“I want to congratulate them for their efforts; this award is a direct reflection of their brilliance and unwavering dedication to their clients.”

 

 

Omnicom won the award, which was known in past years as the holding company of the year, for the first time since 2019 after WPP won it in 2020/21, the double pandemic year, and 2022.

 

Phil Thomas, the chairman of Lions, said, “The body of Lion-winning work that emerged from the jury rooms points the way forward, and demonstrates the power of the industry to drive change, build businesses and shape society.

 

“Congratulations to all those who entered, who made the shortlists, and who won a Lion at the Festival’s 70th edition to set the creative benchmark on the global stage.”

 

List of key company winners

 

Agency of the year

1 GUT, Buenos Aires

2 Publicis Conseil, Paris

3 Adam&Eve/DDB London

 

Independent agency of the year

1 GUT, Buenos Aires

2 Rethink, Toronto

3 Wieden+Kennedy, Portland

 

Network of the year

1 DDB Worldwide

2 Ogilvy

3 BBDO Worldwide

 

Most creative company of the year

1 Omnicom

2 WPP

3 Interpublic

 

Palme d'Or

1 Somesuch, USA

2 SMUGGLER, UK

3 Biscuit Filmworks, USA

4 Spoon, Japan

5 Rebolucion, Mexico

 

Creative Brand of the Year

1 Apple

2 Dove

3 Heineken