The Women I Want To See At Advertising Week

Last week I highlighted 10 things you need to know about Advertising Week.

This year, we are very deliberately starting our week with the Future is Female awards with LinkedIn and we end with a great wrap party hosted and played by female talent with Stylist (much more to be revealed soon). This focus on women is deliberate – we’re lucky in this industry to have many great female role models to shout about. So here goes.

So this week I want to highlight how many incredible women we have speaking at Advertising Week. I’ve picked just a few of the women I’m excited to watch on stage. And just to be fair, I’ve picked 12 women but also picked two men, which my bad maths suggests is almost 14.3% which coincidentally is the same as the gender pay gap in the UK. Just saying. (Er. Don’t check these sums.)

1.??? Caroline Hirons

If you don’t know Caroline, you’re missing out on a woman who has built an empire in the world of skincare from what we all want to embody – independent integrity and personality. To be highlighted by Caroline is the dream of every skincare brand and now she has started her own.

2.??? Chioma Nnadi

As the head of editorial content for British Vogue, it would be fair to say Chioma is the most important woman in fashion and I feel sure she would never judge that pink jacket I wore two years ago to Advertising Week because she knows it’s vintage Gucci. As one of the pre-eminent tastesetters globally, I’ll be queuing up for this one.

3.??? Chloe Davies

Chloe?founded ‘It Takes A Village Collective’ a global hub for Black women in advertising, media, marketing and comms, whose mission is to ensure that one in 5 people in adland will be a Black woman by 2028. I like this mission because we need more Black women in the industry and because I see Chloe showing up to support all women, all the time.

4.??? Andria Vidler

Alright, confession time. Andria is my old boss but she doesn’t pay me anymore so I can just tell you how amazing you have to be to be the CEO of a country’s lottery. They don’t let just anyone count all that money (…may not have strong grip on her actual role….)

5.??? Cocktail Carmen

What a name!!! I’ve always wanted to be something cool like that but I am called Ruth so I just have to hope people forget my name. Carmen O’Neal is a cocktail expert, founder of 58 and CO Distillery and TV personality who you can see on Saturday Kitchen. Join her for a guide to sustainable distilling and um, cocktails.

6.?? Talar El Asswad

Talar is one of many brand marketers we have on stage but I picked her as she has the best job title I have ever heard. She is marketing lead for desserts. Yes, you and I normal folks never even knew this was possible. This is not only my personal dream but she has been responsible for some amazing campaigns too.

7.?? Stacey Solomon

I’m lucky enough to have shared a stage with Stacey before. I’ve rarely met someone working in TV and content creation who has such a sophisticated understanding of their own audience, brand profile and even visual style. Looking forward to hearing her insights this year.

8.?? Lisa Delaney

As the person who is managing lifestyle marketing at Cathay Pacific, Lisa has a very interesting and tough job in a competitive market. With so many people tied into loyalty programs, how can you differentiate yourself? Excited to hear her views.

9.?? Nisha Nath

As an ex-archaeologist, it probably comes as no surprise that I am jealous of Nisha’s role managing the brand for The National Trust. With history in her hands, keeping the brand relevant while speaking to the past is a huge challenge.

10. ?Sophie Devonshire

The lovely Sophie is a marketing leader among leaders. She is always standing up and taking part in everything she can. Nobody is better connected nor aware of the trends, issues and challenges marketers face.

11. ?Sam Glynne

Sam has long been my industry woman crush. She works on connecting brands and talent but with some of TV’s biggest content deals in her portfolio.

12. Wunmi Bello

Wunmi is one of our amazing mentors at Advertising Week this year and also the host of her very own eponymous TV show. I deliberately haven’t looked up her age in case she’s achieved so much by an age so youthful that I have to go back to bed.

And a couple of guys I wanted to mention…..

1.?? Devran Amaratunga Karaca, CEO, Kyra

I'm excited to see what Devran says about the creator space, talking about how to build 'always on' partnerships.

2.???? Richard Hammond

Some of you may know that I originally wanted to be an F1 driver so I’m very excited to jump on stage with Richard and hear about how he is building communities around the love of motoring. Sadly I am not quite as talented behind the wheel but it’s funny how life brings you together!

Right, better get back to putting this whole thing together. Hoping to see many of you at 180 Studios next week for the brilliant people who are joining us.

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