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VML UK appoints Cat Davis as Chief Marketing Officer. In her new role, Davis will be charged with building on VML's recent account wins for Heineken and Allen & Overy and the record-breaking haul of 10 Cannes Lions wins at this year's festival. Agency VML UK has announced the appointment of Cat Davis to the role of UK Chief Marketing Officer, joining the company's senior leadership team to help drive the next chapter of its ambitious expansion. Davis reports to VML UK Group CEO Joe Petyan, at a pivotal moment for VML, following a record-breaking haul of 10 Cannes Lions wins at this year's festival including a prestigious Grand Prix for "The KitKat Heist", being named as Campaign's Global Network of the year and a step change in output across the agency's integrated model. Davis brings over 20 years of experience leading growth and marketing efforts across the UK's creative agencies. Most recently she was Atomic London's first CMO and prior to that was Group Marketing Director at The MISSION Group, leading group-wide growth initiatives across 19 agencies spanning the full comms spectrum, helping to deliver major wins that included Porsche, Post Office and Macmillan. Earlier in her career, she served as CMO of Grey, Cheil, gyro, Carat and Fold7. An active industry voice, Davis sits on the Executive Committee of WACL and has been recognised as a Campaign A-Lister, a Creative Pool Top 100 Influencer, and an IPA & Campaign Women of Tomorrow finalist. She also served on the IPA's New Business & Marketing Group and was a board member and former Chair of the MAA's New Business Group. In her new role, Davis will oversee growth strategy, reputation and marketing across the full VML UK spectrum - encompassing advertising, social, commerce, customer experience and tech transformation. Davis said: "I've spent my career helping agencies grow, and what drew me to VML is the rare combination of world-class creativity, deep technology expertise and a genuine commitment to putting people at the heart of everything it does. At a time when clients are navigating unprecedented change, VML is uniquely placed to connect brand, customer experience, commerce and transformation in ways that deliver meaningful business growth. With the momentum already building across the business and Joe's leadership shaping an exciting new chapter, it's a privilege to be joining the team." Petyan added: "At VML UK, we've got world-class creative capabilities and an enterprise-grade technology offering, solidifying a differentiated fully integrated proposition for clients. Cat joins us now to scale all of that. She's smart, strategic, brilliantly connected and she's exactly the kind of energy we need to drive the next wave of growth for VML and our clients." Membership offers you insight, inspiration and tools to transform your workflow Find out more

Publicis' Influential hires former We Are Social & VML execs Kelson Ong & Erin Hunter. Published on: 21st July 2026 at 10:44 AM Publicis Groupe's influencer and social agency, Influential Australia, has appointed Kelson Ong and Erin Hunter as group directors for Melbourne and Sydney. Ong returns to Publicis Groupe after almost a decade, where he most recently worked at We Are Social Singapore for over four years as general manager & head of business development, marketing and PR. Hunter brings 17 years of industry experience, most recently working at VML as head of commerce & LIVE AUNZ. Hunter and Ong will play a key role in growing and deepening client partnerships, while driving commercial outcomes through industry-leading social and influencer solutions. General manager of Influential Australia Catherine Wilkinson said: "As brands put social at the centre of their marketing, Influential Australia is assembling a team that's redefining what a modern influencer and social agency agency looks like." "We're attracting exceptional talent, creating work that shapes culture instead of chasing it, and building a workplace where people are encouraged to do brilliant work without taking themselves too seriously." On his new role, Ong highlighted that the agency is "building something genuinely different". "It's an agency that treats social-first thinking and creativity as a strategic craft in its own right. I'm excited to help brands grow by putting that thinking into practice, connecting culture, creators, and commerce from the start." Meanwhile, Hunter described the pace of social currently as being "electric". "Influential is building something special, not just because of its momentum, but because it's investing in people as much as the work," he said. "That's exactly the kind of environment I want to help grow." Influential Australia was launched in September 2025, and works to help brands connect with culture, creators and commerce. Join more than 30,000 advertising industry experts Get all the latest advertising and media news direct to your inbox from B&T.

Agency scorecards report. VML is having a moment. The 'Wonderfully, Uncomfortable Human' creative shop was a shining light for Australia at Cannes, Spikes, the Effies and plenty of other shows in between. It stole the show at Spikes Asia, claiming 14 awards and being named Australian Agency of the year. Eye catching work included KitKat's 'Break Chair' which utilised gaming streamers to give hardcore gamers a chance to score KitKat's when they took a break. Its 'Thanks For Coke Creating' campaign, a global VML collaboration with Coca-Cola cleaned up at the D&AD and New York Festivals, while 'The Hidden Eye Test' for 1001 Optometry, stormed AWARD Awards and won international acclaim at Cannes. The campaign (see below) uses cleverly designed billboards that let people with poor eyesight know they need an eye test. 'Legacy Larger' was one of the standout campaigns of the Cairns Crocodiles, helping the agency pick up seven Crocs. Meanwhile, 'Commuter Camo', another banger for KitKat, disguised commuters who want a break on public transport with Hoodies designed to blend in with the public transport seats. All up, VML won more than 60 awards across the world with work that not only pushed the boundaries of creativity and effectiveness, but also celebrated innovation. It's the sort of creative performance that Tame Impala's mastermind Chris Parker would stand uop and take notice. This sort of success doesn't come by chance, VML spent 2024 laying the groundwork for success including a 'Creative Spectrum' framework that champions creative excellence and an unwavering focus on impactful outcomes. This was brought to life via an entirely new value stream that crafted a partnership with Rip Curl. VML shattered the conventional 'fee for service' model by aligning both parties around a shared subscription revenue model with governance, IP ownership, roadmap evolution, and performance measurement contractually embedded under a Master Project Agreement. For an industry often trapped in fee compression and short-term thinking, this innovative model offered a clear, outcomes-linked blueprint for VML (and the industry) for the future. The Advisory Panel were particularly impressed by this "fresh thinking" to a commercial model. VML's approach also led to new business success. It won 60 per cent of the pitches it contested, winning clients including University of WA, Kubota and Museums Victoria while retaining Horizon Energy, the Department of Justice, Shell and more. It only lost one client in Synergy. On the talent front, VML made one notable change when its commerce MD Kate Warren-Smith left the business after the global network decided to fold in its e-commerce practive. Thomas Tearle led VML to great heights in 2025, and has since handed over the leadership baton to Paul Bradbury, the former TBWA leader and industry stalwart. Meanwhile, Charlie Dejean won Creative of the Year in B&T's 30 under 30, and also took out the Grand Prix. The agency is not only in safe hands today, but is developing some of the finest creative leaders of the future.