Duncan Allan, Cameron Roberts and Tom O’Connor have joined forces to launch independent media agency Fourteen10.
At the core of Fourteen10’s proposition is a blend of marketing science, experimentation and direct response advertising.
“Fundamentally, we believe advertising has never been harder and the need for skilled agencies never higher,” said Duncan Allan, co-founder of Fourteen10.
“Our collective experiences garnered from media agencies, working with high-growth startups and behind the curtain at Google, have shaped our vision for a new type of agency model that’s laser focussed on helping companies solve their biggest advertising challenges, as they mature through different stages.”
Steve Brennen, founder and CEO of growth fund Archie, and ex-CMO of Uber, said Fourteen10 brings an exceptional level of expertise in paid media, with a deep understanding of how media mixes should evolve through each stage of a company’s growth.
"Their proactive, forward-thinking approach is reshaping the agency model and making them a standout partner for any business looking to scale," he said.
The agency believes a re-invigorated approach to the agency model is required. One that puts strategic talent at the forefront of everything, moving away from a reliance on an army of “underpaid and overworked junior staff”.
To do this Fourteen10 is investing in technology and AI to automate routine tasks, freeing up the team to focus on impactful work and deliver exceptional value.
Cameron Roberts, co-founder of Fourteen10 said designing an agency from scratch to solve important advertising challenges for its clients, means the new business model must look nothing like the status quo.
"We’ve designed the agency with a clean piece of paper to help our clients achieve profitable growth as advertising and marketing becomes more complex. We’re in the business of simple, not easy," he said.
Nick Holden, CMO of Mosh, said: he has found myself too often working with media agencies that are out of touch with the realities of a scaling business.
"Fourteen10 has been the antithesis of this," he said.
"Not only is their knowledge of media exceptional, but they also understand the intricacies of the landscape and can communicate with us not just in media terms but in the language of the boardroom.”
Tom O’Connor, the third founding member of Fourteen10, said the founders are clear on what they need to build and what media agencies need to do to stay relevant as we move into an AI future.
"I couldn’t be more excited to be joining Duncan and Cam on this journey,” said Tom. “We know the biggest advertising challenges brands will face moving forward and are solely focussed on providing solutions to address them.”
Fourteen10 will specifically target growth-oriented challenger brands that are ready to take on their categories with robust thinking and strategies.
The agency’s foundation clients include investment platform, Stake; travel insurance company, Fast Cover; men’s healthcare brand, Mosh; Fintech Accelerator, Archie; and salary advance company, Wagetap.
And why the Fourteen10 moniker? “Duncan and I share an October 14 birth date and so October 14th being the fourteenth day of the tenth month, and our name, seemed like an auspicious date to officially launch,” said Roberts.
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