The CEO of the independent global creative agency shares his thoughts on magnetic ideas, receptiveness, and staying true to your standards.
Before an interview I always try to find out a little bit about who the person is, rather than what they do. So in the torpid afternoon heat of Cannes, we spent some time chatting about Dr. Peter Figge*s favourite vacation spot 每 the Engadin valley in Switzerland 每 before moving on to work-related matters.
But it turns out that Peter*s Swiss-German background plays vital a role in his business approach, too. He started out in 1987 at Cash RSCG in Zurich. ※Think about Switzerland in the 80s. Small country, four languages. The agency had very little TV budget because it was so small. As a result, I was never too focused on TV.§
This gave him an openness to alternative solutions, he explains. ※I*ve always been interested in many different means of communication. That*s how I became one of the first digital pioneers in the agency scene in Germany: because I was fascinated by its possibilities.§
He remains media agnostic 每 social post, e-commerce game, cultural event, you name it 每 as long as the solution delivers. ※I love it when there*s a creative output that really makes a difference, is based on the power of the unexpected, and creates momentum for clients.§
First establish your values
The power of the unexpected is a mantra at Jung von Matt, whose logo is a Trojan horse. ※First, we actually have a logo 每 if you think about it, most agencies only have a wordmark. Second, it encompasses a large part of our DNA. We strongly believe in unexpected solutions that make people voluntarily listen to us, talk to us. The Trojan horse contained very few soldiers; it was not a show of brute force. It was an unusual, unexpected idea that made the Trojans open the gate on a voluntary basis.§
That word ※voluntary§ is key. It*s very difficult to force messages on consumers these days. ※We all know if we don*t come up with something that catches your attention, you*re gone.§
Great campaigns not only attract attention, they provoke action 每 the momentum he referred to earlier. JvM founders Holger Jung and Jean-Remy von Matt even wrote a book with that title.
Peter tells another story about them. ※Before they started the agency, 34 years ago now, they spent a weekend together. And they did something which I still give as an advice to people who want to enter into any relationship. They wrote down what was truly important to each of them, individually, put it in an envelope, sealed the envelope, and gave it to the other person the next day. That way, they couldn*t be argued or reasoned into a different direction.§
If we don*t come up with something that catches your attention, you*re gone.
Culture and subculture
Jung von Matt was founded in Hamburg and is proud to be European, although it has offices as far afield as Shanghai, Beijing, Los Angeles and Seoul. What have been the biggest challenges of global expansion?
※We have a strong joint culture, but there are local nuances. For example, we*re independent, and in some Asian countries, independence is not seen as a good thing. It means you might be small, or irrelevant. So when we express that we*re &fiercely independent*, they*ll say, &We know that*s relevant in Europe, but maybe don*t say it so loud here?*§
I wonder if the agency*s European heritage gives it a useful point of differentiation in the US.
※First of all, very clearly, nobody was waiting for us in the US 每 nobody. But we do have some unique selling points. In comparison to other creative agencies, not only are we way more digital, but we started very early on to invest in what*s now called &culture marketing*. We started exploring subcultures, gaming culture, cosplay culture, lots of different communities. We experimented very early on in talking to those communities.§
The agency also has 80 people devoted to sports marketing. ※We know a lot about how to creatively implement sports as a platform, which we can leverage for the next World Cup and the next Olympic Games.§
He adds that the focus is not necessarily on US brands, but taking European or Asian brands to the States. ※For example we*re doing the US campaigns for Laneige, a Korean beauty brand, in a collaboration between Seoul and Stuttgart, where we have a unique beauty competence.§
I*m involved in client business. I*m involved in ideas. And we can move very, very, fast.
A focus on the essential
JvM is 1,400 people strong, neither small nor sprawling. ※We still have a culture where people can email me directly, call me directly. I*m involved in client business. I*m involved in ideas. And we can move very, very, fast. If somebody has a great idea and it involves founding a new agency, I can do it next week.§
Independence allows the agency to focus on the essential, he adds. ※If you*re stock listed, you have to tell a new story every quarter, or even less. You have to deliver on a growth promise. But we want to be maximum customer-centric. We want to focus on nothing but the two stakeholder groups that are essential to create great work: our staff and our clients.§
The agency has a strong ethical stance; alongside its work for clients like Adidas, Opel and Sixt, it has run campaigns tackling Right Wing extremism. Internally, Peter says, the agency is not backing away from its DE&I initiatives, but doubling down on them. ※This is very important to us and our staff. Especially given that in these current times we seem to have a great difficulty in listening to one another. We need to hear many voices, many points of view.§
Diversity is apparent in the agency*s campaigns, too, such as the AI-assisted moment when Germany*s Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier gave his annual Christmas address in 12 different languages. ※The lead creative on the campaign is German-Turkish. Her mother burst into tears when she heard the Federal President talking Turkish for the first time.§
Rather like the agency*s founders, whose envelopes ensured they couldn*t be deflected from their core beliefs, JvM holds itself to high standards. Peter says: ※You know, we have seven principles at the agency. The sixth is that we are more critical of ourselves than of others. And the seventh is that we always remain dissatisfied.§