Publicis Groupe is back.
The firm has unveiled its three main areas of focus for Cannes Lions after it ditched the 2018 conference to focus on launching enterprise platform Marcel.
Arthur Sadoun, Publicis Groupe chairman and CEO, has chosen to zero in on creativity, championing the next generation and curating entries in partnership with clients.
“With these three principles, we want to be a positive force for what the festival is and should always be — a creative meeting place where clients and agencies learn, collaborate and invent the future of our industry together,” said Sadoun.
Two-thirds of the Groupe’s 313 attendees are creatives. A total of 35 leaders from across the holding company will be dedicating their time as Cannes jurors. The team is ramping up participation and organization of multiple CMO accelerator events to bring clients the best of creativity. Publicis will also embrace the See It Be it program to inspire the next generation female creatives.
Meanwhile, a focus on the next generation of talent will see 25% of delegates as first-time attendees. Seventeen are participating in Young Lions competitions, and three are attending Young Lions Media Academy.
Publicis’ number of submissions are on par with 2018 when clients and partners submitted the work. This year, the team has implemented a selective award strategy inspired by 2018’s experience with its clients. It’s resulted in 50% fewer entries than 2017.
Publicis has stressed Cannes 2019 is not a race for medals, rather a focus on visible work for key clients, like 2018’s Grand Prix and 2019’s Grand Effie for P&G’s Tide campaigns.
This story first appeared on campaignlive.com.
