Embracing the S-Word

Small.

“Just wait until Small.” The reoccurring theme Dan Peres, President and Editor-in-Chief at Ad Age, kept hearing from his team after each event that was ‘their favorite so far.’

Why? Because they’re right. The Ad Age Small Agency Conference and Award Show, in my opinion was well, is the best event in the industry. Its energy, humility, and dedication to do good is a refreshing reminder of the beauty of the advertising community―a community that has received a bad rep the past decade.

The concept is to honor small, independent agencies producing exciting, innovative work despite hurdles of the past couple of years. Agencies as young as six months and as old as 60 come together to celebrate one another, learn, and share as peers…not competitors.

As indie shops who answer to themselves, not shareholders, they grow on their own terms, work on brands they are about, and implement HR and DEI tactics that put employees before profits. The conference agency covered these topics, and more.

Here is a roundup of our favorite tweets and soundbites on the event.

The conference ends with The Small Agency Awards. A huge shoutout to all the winners including Small Agency of the Year, Mojo Supermarket. Check out a full list of the winners here (Ad Age subscription required).

Finally, a sincere thank you to The Escape Pod who hosted the event and Ad Age for not only recognizing, but support, the not so small ‘small’ agency community.