BIG Partnership, the UK marketing and communications agency, has appointed Rob McCann as head of its Manchester office as it plans to ramp up investment in the North of England. 

Rob joins the 95-strong agency as a board director and will work closely with BIG’s existing board to drive forward the agency’s ambitious growth plans across the UK.  

Coming to BIG from his previous role as head of client services at Manchester agency BBI, and prior to that Yorkshire agency Jaywing, Rob brings more than a decade of agency experience across integrated marketing, digital and communications. His previous clients include Sky, BT Sports, Hoover, Halfords, DW Sports, ADT and Jewson.  

BIG’s CEO, Allan Barr, said: “Rob’s appointment represents a major signing for our agency. He is a well-known and highly respected figure within the North-West agency scene and brings a huge amount of experience in successfully leading integrated accounts for a multitude of household brands. 

“I’m excited by Rob’s vision for BIG in Manchester. He has a proven track record of creating major campaigns that have delivered impressive results for clients and we believe he is the right person to lead our operations in the North West. We’re backing him with a major investment to significantly ramp up our Manchester team and he’s already identified several key signings that we’ll be unveiling in the coming weeks.” 

Rob McCann said: “I’ve been keeping an eye on BIG’s Manchester office for a few years now. From a standing start, it’s grown to become one of the UK’s largest independent agencies and one of only a few who can truly boast a full-service offering to its clients. Once I learned of its plans to significantly ramp up its base in the city, I jumped at the chance to become a part of that journey. 

“As the industry evolves, I believe we are seeing a trend in clients looking to benefit from the economies of scale and efficiencies that come with having a single agency partner to cover all their marketing and communications needs. Clients often don’t have the time to brief multiple agencies and deal with what can be competing interests. As a full-service agency, I believe BIG is ideally placed to capitalise on that shift.” 

BIG provides PR, marketing, digital, public affairs, design and events to more than 350 clients nationwide, from offices in Manchester, Glasgow, Aberdeen and Edinburgh. Clients include the likes of Apple, Red Bull, NatWest, Peel Ports, The Macallan and Aldi.   

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