Australian market ‘very difficult for global networks to get their head around’: AnalogFolk Australia CEO

This month, AnalogFolk became the latest agency to shed its global owners. Now, newly titled local CEO Matt Robinson said the Australian market is vastly different to the rest of the world, and for that reason it is”very difficult for global networks to get their head around it.”

本月早些时候,澳大利亚AnalogFolk成为the latest global network agency to become locally owned, withRobinson and chief strategy officer Ben Hourahine staging a management buyout.

The digital creative firm followed in footsteps ofBen Lilley’s McCann(now Hero),Richard Curtis’ Futurebrand,Helen Graney’s Jack Morton and Weber Shandwick, as well as 303 MullenLowe, whichNew Zealand business Attivo bought out locally from IPG Mediabrands in 2021.

Speaking to the trend, Robinson added that the size of the market could also mean global businesses were less inclined to invest significantly in their Australian presences when they can “win a tiny client in the US and it’s equivalent to a huge client in Australia.”

This context aided the fact, that without significant engagement from the global network into Australia, AnalogFolk Australia has largely been considered as an independent agency in the Australian market – a misconception Robinson said the agency would often have to correct.

When industry awards nights would roll around, people would ask why the agency wasn’t entered into an independent category. “We’d have to tell them that we were actually majority global owned,” he said, “it’s a weird spot to be in.”

The decision to go independent was also driven by a difference in priorities between the Australian and global teams, with Robinson noting that many of AnalogFolk’s global “initiatives and clients” didn’t necessarily line up with what was needed in the Australian market.

Yesterday the agency picked up its first account win since becoming independent,becoming the first creative and digital agency of record for Lark Distilling Co. The agency is set to develop the Tasmanian whisky brand’s first ever brand platform, which will be rolled out in the coming months through advertising campaigns, content and digital experiences.