We were in the Independent over the weekend. A big proper grown-up newspaper! Here’s what Clare Beale had to say about us:
So who IS Albion? It’s a question plenty in adland will be asking themselves after news that the agency has just snaffled the coveted £10m eBay ad account from under the nose of arguably London’s hottest creative agency, Mother. Some pretty good agencies had already been ruled out at an earlier stage: WCRS, Abbott Mead Vickers BBDO, Saatchi & Saatchi.
OK, Albion already works with eBay, handling advertising for its Skype TV service. Nevertheless, the eBay pitch will have brought out the best in some of London’s best agencies.
Actually, Albion is run by Jason Goodman, ex-DDB, ex-Tribal DDB, former media planner. Creative directors are Matt Gibbins (ex-Mother, Fallon and Wieden & Kennedy) and Nick Darken (ex-W&K, St Lukes). The agency offers creativity and planning based around the principle of simplicity. “An uncomplicated way of working frees us up to question normal practices and create ideas that challenge the way people think about your brand,” they say.
Betfair, UK TV and BlackBerry have bought the Albion way. As agencies struggle to work through ideas such as integration, strategic communication and digital, the idea of something simple no doubt seems rather appealing. Clearly eBay agrees.
We like being known for simplicity, as it’s one of the things we think is important. Thanks Clare!
(Sadly Matt Gibbins has emigrated to New Zealand, but we’ve got lots more talented people. And we’re looking for more – want to join our team?)
