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1 MARC NOHR
Managing partner, Kitcatt Nohr Alexander Shaw
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The past year saw Nohr emerge as one of the shrewdest businessmen in DM and the industry's eloquent defender in the face of last summer's media onslaught on junk mail. Nohr more than satisfies our ranking criteria and tops our agency elite as a result.
Through a series of clever digital and data partnership deals, Nohr has created a more rounded offering in Kitcatt Nohr Alexander Shaw. Bagging the Wait rose and Norwich Union accounts at the end of 2006 capped the agency's most successful 12 months in its five year history. As well as winning ten new pieces of business last year, Nohr's agency grew profits to £3m and invested in start-up data company The Huw Davis Partnership.
At the height of DM's Summer of Discontent, Nohr was a vocal defender of direct mail in the media. His witty, self-deprecating column for Radio Four's You and Yours programme took some of the sting out of the negative coverage. Nohr's peers describe him as "strongly principled" and "good for the industry". But whether he can maintain his high industry profile and continue to build Kitcatt Nohr at its current fast pace remains to be seen.
2 JONATHAN STEAD
Chief executive, and
JOHN TOWNSHEND
creative partner, Rapier
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The Stead and Townshend pairing is the engine powering Rapier's seemingly unstoppable locomotive. Rapier garners admiration in agency circles for being one of the last remaining independent shops in the industry - and one that produced more billings in the past year than any of its rivals. In 2006, Stead and Townshend ensured that Rapier won the lion's share of the Esom Virgin Media launch account. There were also a fistful of awards, a further three business wins, including the Pru-Health account and the honour of being named Direct Agency of the Year by Marketing Direct's sister title Campaign. Rumours abound that Stead wants to sell Rapier, but Stead says he is "having too much fun at the moment" to be tempted.
3 STEVE HARRISON
Chairman and creative director, Harrison Troughton Wunderman, and worldwide creative director, Wunderman
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When they come to write the history of HTW, Harrison may want to flick past the chapter marked '2006'....