UK Government and UK Advertising Industry Launch Cannes Lions 2023 Showcase

50+ companies backed by Department of Business and Trade (DBT) plus special industry partnerships

London, June 14, 2023: The UK advertising industry will be delivering a unique showcase at Cannes Lions this year, with over 50 companies participating in two UK Advertising Exports Group and Department of Business and Trade (DBT) trade missions. The showcase will include 34 inspiring speakers at the Palais, 30 talks looking at the future of the creative economy beyond the Palais, 33 judges including 4 jury chairs and 12 Young Lions representing the UK. It is led by UK Advertising Exports Group (UKAEG), in collaboration with GREAT and Department for Business and Trade (DBT) and supported by a group of industry partners – the Advertising Association, BENlabs, Clear Channel UK, and TikTok.

The first trade mission will support companies from across the sector to build revenue from around the world. featuring businesses offering services including creative, e-commerce, B2B, AdTech, production, social, media, immersive, events, and sports marketing. The second will provide additional support to companies attending Cannes for the first time. The goal is to help the industry generate new international revenue streams, building on the £15bn exports of advertising and market research services in 2021.

The showcase organisers, UKAEG, are collaborating with groups including the American Advertising Federation, The Marketing Society and Campaign to host several exclusive networking events. A special global roundtable is planned with Campaign while talks on the Future of the Creative Economy will be hosted across all five days at BENlabs. Further roundtables with international markets such as US, India, UAE, and Japan, are planned, plus meetups to help foster relationships with companies from around the world. UK and US industry leaders will meet on the Pinterest beach to discuss the driving forces behind creative communities in both markets.

To celebrate UK creativity, UKAEG is hosting the GREAT global dinner which includes a special appearance by TikTok creator Rob Mayhew, and a unique happy hour event with UK agency Billion Dollar Boy. In addition, a new TikTok filter, Roarsome, has been created for the showcase by St Luke’s in the form of a branded bucket hat, the sound of a lion’s roar, and branded mics for interviews.

Aisling Conlon, Director of International Trade, Advertising Association said: “The UK has dominated the Cannes Lions awards since 2005, triumphing over all other European countries with a staggering 1,855 victories to date. As representatives of an outward-looking industry, we take immense pride in ranking within the top 3 winners worldwide alongside the US and Brazil. Year after year, UK companies demonstrate our cutting-edge innovation, spearhead industry conversations, and fuel the growth of the creative economy. We are thrilled to launch a trade mission in collaboration with DBT, as another demonstration of our commitment to global business growth in the advertising sector. In addition, we have received tremendous support from our partners, who have committed time, energy, and funding to help us promote UK advertising in the most positive, inclusive, and sustainable ways possible.”

The UK has been the second most successful winning country at Cannes Lions since 2018 and is represented in judging this year with 33 UK-based jurors on the awarding jury including four jury presidents Chaka Sobhani, global chief creative officer, Leo Burnett; Rob Doubal, co-president, McCann London, and joint chief creative officer, McCann UK; Grace Francis, global chief creative and design officer, Wongdoody; and Jo-ann Robertson, chief executive, global markets, Ketchum.

For more information visit our dedicated website here or get in touch with Aisling.Conlon@adassoc.org.uk.