Grey Global Group
 | |
| Type | Subsidiary, WPP Group |
|---|---|
| Industry | Advertising, Marketing |
| Founded | 1917 |
| Headquarters |
200 Fifth Avenue New York, NY, U.S. |
| Key people | James R. Heekin III, Chairman & CEO |
| Services | Brand management, Marketing strategy, Creative development, Direct marketing, Public relations, Public affairs, Digital marketing, Production |
| Revenue | 1.307 billion USD (2003) |
| Employees | 6,500 |
| Parent | WPP Group |
| Subsidiaries | Grey, G2, GHG, GCI Group, MediaCom Worldwide, Alliance, G WHIZ, WING, Grey EMEA |
| Website | www.grey.com |
Grey Group is a global advertising and marketing agency with headquarters in New York City, and 432 offices in 96 countries, operating in 154 cities[1] — organized into four geographical units: North America; Europe, Middle East & Africa, Asia-Pacific and Latin America.[2]
As a unit of communications conglomerate WPP Group, Grey Global Group operates branded independent business units in many communications disciplines including: advertising, direct marketing, public relations, public affairs, brand development, customer relationship management, sales promotion, interactive marketing — through its subsidiaries: Grey, G2, GHG, GCI Group, MediaCom Worldwide, Alliance, G WHIZ, and WING.
Grey Group’s international clients include: Procter & Gamble, GlaxoSmithKline, Nokia, British American Tobacco, Diageo, Volkswagen, Novartis, Wyeth, Canon, DirecTV, and 3M.[3]
The company has won: 10 Cannes Lions; beside the Addy, Clio and one Emmy Award.[3] Grey Group's European network, Grey EMEA, won 26 Euro EFFIE awards, and is the five-time Euro EFFIE Agency Network of the Year, in four consecutive years of 2005–2008 [4] and again in 2012 [5]
History
Founded in 1917 by Larry Valenstein and Arthur Fatt, Grey Global Group began as a direct marketing company named Grey Studios, reflecting the color of the wall of its original quarters, changing to Grey Advertising in 1925.
In 1956, Grey acquired its first major client, Procter & Gamble. Through the 1960s and 1970s, Grey continued to acquire such major accounts, and grew into related communication fields. In 1970, Edward H. Meyer became CEO and would remain in that position for 36 years[6] before selling the company and joining his son, Anthony E. Meyer, in management of private family wealth.
In 1988, the offshore operation, London-based Grey Communications Group, recruited Barry Chapman as Group IS Director. In 1989 Chapman developed the New Media Experiment. Chapman explored the use of the internet as an alternative to traditional advertising media putting Grey at the forefront of the internet revolution.
In 2000, Grey Advertising became Grey Global Group. On March 7, 2005, WPP Group beat out Havas in a race to acquire Grey Global, the seventh-largest advertising agency at the time,[citation needed] for approximately $1.3 billion USD.
In late 2005, James R. Heekin III became CEO of Grey Worldwide, Grey Global Group's traditional advertising agency. On January 1, 2007, he became Chairman and CEO of Grey Group, the renamed agency holding company.[3] He reports to Martin Sorrell, CEO of WPP Group.
Grey Group, Grey Advertising New York and G2 moved to a LEEDS certified building at 200 5th Avenue in New York in November 2009, after 45 years at their previous location.[7]
Awards
In 2010, Grey was named to Fast Companys "50 Most Innovative Companies". In 2010, Grey was put on Advertising Ages "Agency A-List". In 2006, Grey was awarded 12 "Spots of the Week" by Ad Age, which placed it second-highest overall.
In popular culture
- In the AMC series Mad Men, Duck Phillips joins Grey Advertising after being dumped by Sterling Cooper.
- In episode three of the 2010 series of BBC Three's Young, Dumb and Living Off Mum, the young adults spend a day at Grey Advertising working on a mock sexual health campaign.
- Lana Del Rey was born Elizabeth Woolridge Grant in New York City on June 21, 1986, to former Grey Group copywriter turned entrepreneur, Rob Grant, and former Grey account executive, Pat Grant.
Controversy
Grey has been known to post job listings advertising paid internships but offering below minimum wage pay rates.
In November 2013 artist TJ Wright posted an email correspondence he had with Grey Associate Creative Director Roy Torres in which Wright was asked to create digital paintings without compensation due to a lack of budget for artwork. According to the emails, after Wright refused the request, Torres responded by insulting Wright's work saying, "If we had money for this, we'd be going after real artists…who paint on real canvases. Not the digital fake stuff." [8]
See also
- Go Greyhound and Leave the Driving to Us
- Space Chair, 2009 ad for Toshiba
- Let the Issues Be the Issue, campaign about the 2008 U.S. presidential election
References
- ↑ "Nirvik Singh appointed Chairman & CEO of Grey Group Asia Pacific" (Press release). WPP. 2008-12-15. Retrieved 2009-01-05.
- ↑ "Grey Company Profile". WPP. Retrieved 5 January 2009.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 {CB5FB79B-6948-4CF5-B7FD-9B59D80DAD34} "Grey Global Group appoints James R. Heekin III Chairman and CEO" (Press release). WPP. 2006-12-12. Retrieved 2009-01-05.
- ↑ {66EA83A9-3ABE-4AE6-B96B-776078862253} "Grey EMEA named Agency Network of the Year" (Press release). WPP. 2008-09-17. Retrieved 2009-01-05.
- ↑ "Grey EMEA scoops Agency of the Year Award" (Press release). EACA Euro Effies. 2012. Retrieved 2013-04-04.
- ↑ Elliott, Stuart (2006-12-12). "After 36 Years at Grey, Time for Life No. 2". The New York Times. Retrieved 2008-10-06.
- ↑ "Grey Global Moves Into LEED-CS-Hopeful Toy Building at 200 Fifth Avenue". gbnyc. 2009-11-02. Retrieved 2009-11-02.
- ↑ "ARTISTS BEWARE! ROY TORRES OF GREY ADVERTISING". neechart.blogspot.com. 2013-11-02. Retrieved 2013-11-02.
External links
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