Creative Y&R becomes first Kenyan ad agency to win at Cannes Lions

Creative Y&R team

Kenyan ad agency Creative Y&R has won a Bronze Lion in the copywriting category at the Cannes Lions Festival of Creativity. The win is a first for both the ad company as well as for Kenya.

The winning entry was work done for their client X News. The agency had also been shortlisted for two campaigns for Travelshoppe Ltd, a Kenyan travel agency for its “Visit Madagascar” campaign in the press category.

Prital Patel, Managing Director of Creative Y&R had to this to say about the award “This is really exciting news. Creative Y&R recently joined APA (Advertising Practitioners Association) in Kenya and now we’ve won a Bronze Award in Cannes. This is a great achievement, especially since this is the first time we submitted our work into Cannes and are the first agency in Kenya to receive this award.”

Ben Hunt, Creative Y&R Creative Director, had this to say about the winning work “Sometimes the best ads come easily and are relatively simple to execute. Then there are the ones you have to slave over. I can’t tell you how many times I rewrote the copy and the art director went through hell getting the layouts right. Which makes the achievement all the more satisfying.”

The Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity (formerly the International Advertising Festival) is a global event for those working in the creative communications, advertising and related fields. Thousands of ads from all over the world are showcased and judged.

The Y&R Network ended the 2015 Cannes Lions Festival with a record 89 Lions including a Grand Prix.
Creative Y&R rebranded from Creative Edge after a buy in from Young & Rubicam early this year. The agency recently celebrated its 20-year anniversary and its clients include EABL, UDV, Crown Paints Kenya, GSK and Broadway Bakeries.

Check out the winning entry below.