JWT celebrates 80 years in SA

JWT opened its first local branch in Port Elizabeth in 1928 and this was followed in 1930 with an office in Cape Town, a Johannesburg office in 1932 and a Durban office in 1935.

"Eighty years! It's quite an achievement," says Judy van Dam, MD of JWT Johannesburg. "By 1964, the SA agency handled all or some of the business for more than 100 clients, including Ford, Kellogg, Unilever, Caltex, Philips, Reckitt and Colman and Pfizer.

"JWT continues to provide advertising and communication services to Ford, Kellogg and Unilever - what a wonderful milestone to celebrate," she adds.

After operating globally for 144 years and in South Africa for 80 years, JWT is recognised as one of the largest and most famous advertising agencies in the world. "We have pioneered, invented, evolved, endured and reinvented. It's this ability to constantly evolve and reinvent that has ensured our longevity, success and growth," she adds.

The agency's most recent large reinvention, in 2005, saw J Walter Thompson officially rebranded as JWT and the birth of its time-based philosophy. "Our philosophy contends that the real world is a great deal more interesting than advertising and that time, not money, is the real currency. It holds that we are no longer selling things to people, but buying their time," Van Dam explains. "This philosophy completely reframes our thinking and approach to communication."

According to Van Dam, JWT South Africa is one of the most respected agency brands and has an admired and envied portfolio of blue chip clients. "We have talented people across every discipline in the agency and we are doing excellent work. We look forward to further growth and success," she concludes.