Every month, Saatchi & Saatchi Wellness hosts what it calls a “what’s happening” get-together — a town hall of sorts in which new employees introduce themselves and discuss the projects they’re working on. It’s in these meetings that EVP, business development Steven Hebert most acutely feels “the direct impact of what we do on a daily basis.”
“I get choked up every time,” he says. “I see these smiling people excited to start their new jobs and it’s always the highlight of my month — and year, as they all add up.”
Saatchi & Saatchi Wellness engineered a pivot of sorts in 2023. According to chief strategy officer Margot Grover, the agency pushed away from the traditional health approach of avoiding sickness and toward an aspirational one oriented around overall wellness.
“I was given the opportunity to build a strategic capability that could answer any assignment in the health and wellness space,” says Grover, who joined the agency in 2021 as EVP, head of strategy. “I felt that, in 2023, we actually got there. There’s no brief in the health and wellness space that we can’t handle at this point.”
In the wake of the subtle shift, 2023 revenue was flat at a MM+M-estimated $87.5 million. Staff count declined slightly, to an estimated 250 full-timers from 260 at the start of the year.
Key personnel additions included SVP, creative director John Bird, who joined from BGB Group; SVP, group account director Tracy Cunningham, from Razorfish Health; and SVP, consumer brand strategy Michelle Rowley, from Deutsch. Madhuri Fletcher, who heads up medical strategy at Publicis Health sibling Heartbeat, expanded her charge to include oversight of medical strategy at Saatchi & Saatchi Wellness.
Company president Jennifer Shirley highlights the agency’s recent forays into women’s health among its most noteworthy achievements. “We love all of our clients, and I know we’re not supposed to have favorite children,” she says. “But every time there’s a women’s health opportunity, we fall in love with it.”
To that end, Saatchi & Saatchi Wellness enjoyed a high-profile year courtesy of a Super Bowl ad for Astellas Pharma’s Veozah, which treats hot flashes caused by menopause. The agency also worked with Sanofi (on Cialis Together), and GSK (on endometrial cancer).
Up next: the development of a full-on behavioral design practice. “I’ve always had a huge amount of passion for this area. So when Margot brought it up as we were planning for 2024, I was like, ‘Let’s build that out,’” Shirley says.
The agency is also excited about continuing internal programming that aims to advance women in their careers.
“We had a luncheon just last week where we had eight or so women meet with the executive leadership team,” recalls chief creative officer Kathy Delaney. “It became this safe place for people — ourselves included — to tell our stories about being women in the industry. It was an intimate and powerful chat among the women in the room about their past and future, and everything in between.”
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Work we wish we did
For decades, Thai schools enforced a practice of punishing students by cutting their hair. Hair is fundamental to how we express ourselves — and self-expression should never be mandated by government. Dove’s Let Her Grow campaign set out to end forced haircuts. It was so effective that, in January 2023, the Ministry of Education made a formal announcement calling for an end to forced haircuts for good. This work is a brilliant example of using creativity as a force for change. — Kathy Delaney
Click to see Saatchi & Saatchi Wellness’ Agency 100 2023 Profile.
