UK magazine Directory claims that its yearly ad rankings have “a genuinely global reach,” and that’s especially true for this year’s winners.
While the US easily beats the UK and Brazil in the “top country for creativity” category (with Sweden coming in at #16), the individuals and agencies named are overwhelmingly European.
BBDO New York, for example, is the only American agency on the top shops list, though Wieden+Kennedy New York (not Portland) scored “No.1 for TV and Film” and Droga5 won the “Best Integrated” category.
BBDO is also the only American agency named in “Top CCOs”: David Lubars tied with Leo Burnett Sao Paulo’s Marcelo Reis for the number one spot while Greg Han placed eighth. Ronald Ng, who joined DigitasLBi in New York earlier this month, made the list for his 2013-2014 work with BBDO’s Singapore office.
In an additional snub, the lists for top ECDs, top art directors and top copywriters include no Americans at all.
Are stateside agencies lagging, or does Directory have a very-slight-but-detectable pro-Euro bias?