‘A defining moment’: Omnicom ANZ folds DDB and FCB into new regional structure

Omnicom Oceania has announced a major restructuring across Australia and New Zealand, aligning the region with the company’s global reorganisation following its acquisition of Interpublic and the retirement of the DDB and FCB brands worldwide.

In Australia, DDB will merge with Clemenger BBDO to create a single national agency under the Clemenger BBDO name. The combined operation will be led by Co-CEOs Sheryl Marjoram in Sydney and Mike Napolitano in Melbourne, who will oversee unified creative, media, strategy and operational teams.

Outgoing Clemenger BBDO CEO Lee Leggett will shift into a new senior regional position as chief customer officer of Omnicom Oceania, a role focused on client experience across the region.

In New Zealand, DDB Group Aotearoa and FCB Group Aotearoa will merge to form McCann Group NZ. The new network will combine creative and media capabilities under a single banner, led jointly by Priya Patel and Paul Wilson, who step into Co-CEO roles. In Wellington, Clemenger Wellington and FCB Wellington will rebrand as McCann Wellington, with local leadership to be confirmed.

SEE MORE: Omnicom to shutter key agencies, cut 4,000 jobs following IPG merger

The moves reflect the global consolidation announced overnight, in which Omnicom confirmed that DDB and FCB will no longer operate as standalone brands. The new global creative network is centred on BBDO, McCann and TBWA, with regional structures now being reshaped to match.

Media operations in Australia and New Zealand remain unchanged, with Hearts & Science, Initiative, Mediahub, OMD, PHD and UM continuing as standalone agencies under the Omnicom Media Group umbrella.

Omnicom Oceania CEO Nick Garrett said the restructure marks a pivotal shift for the region.

“This is a defining moment for our region. By bringing together the depth, ambition and talent of our people, while simplifying the architecture, we are creating modern, future-fit agencies and capabilities that will deliver world-class creativity and media, smarter data and technology integration, and new levels of effectiveness for brands in Australia and New Zealand," he said. 

“I want to congratulate Priya Patel, Paul Wilson, Sheryl Marjoram, Mike Napolitano and Lee Leggett on their new roles. Their leadership will play a critical part in shaping the next era of Omnicom Oceania. These changes honour the legacies of our heritage brands while positioning us to unlock even greater opportunity, effectiveness and growth for our clients and our people.”

The local announcement follows a broader global overhaul that will see more than 4,000 roles cut worldwide, the retirement of DDB, FCB and MullenLowe as global brands, and a shift to a three-network creative structure supported by a group of boutique agencies.

Further leadership updates across APAC are expected in January. Omnicom will formally debut the combined organisation and the next iteration of its Omni platform at CES 2026.