Cannes Lions will honor Susan Hoffman, chief creative officer of Wieden+Kennedy, with the Lion of St. Mark award for a lifetime of service to creativity at this year’s Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity.
Wieden+Kennedy launched in 1982, with Nike as its first client. Susan Hoffman joined W+K as employee No. 8 and has spent the last 40 years defining Wieden+Kennedy’s culture and setting the bar for creative excellence and groundbreaking work.
Hoffman has held creative leadership and management roles in every corner of the independent network, and she’s injected her unique perspective into some of the most memorable ads W+K has produced, including Levi’s “Go Forth,” Chrysler’s “Born of Fire,” Old Spice’s “The Man Your Man Could Smell Like,” Nike’s “Revolution,” “If you let me play,” “Da Da Ding” and so many more. Hoffman also found time to run Wieden+Kennedy 12, the agency’s first experimental ad school that launched in 2004 and brought up some of the most successful creative talent for a decade.
Since 1982, W+K has won 451 Lions at the Festival, including a 2022 Mobile Lions Grand Prix for Google’s “Real Tone” technology, and a Creative Effectiveness Lions Grand Prix for the Nike campaign “Crazy Dreams” in 2021. Wieden+Kennedy London also won the inaugural Social & Influencer Lions Grand Prix in 2018 for the epic “Nothing Beats a Londoner” campaign.
Philip Thomas, chairman, LIONS, said, “We’re delighted to present this year’s Lion of St. Mark to industry trailblazer Susan Hoffman. Susan has been instrumental in driving the industry and creativity forward over the last 40 years, with an impressive body of work that reflects her unique perspective and ability to challenge the status quo in order to harness creativity as a force for progress for people, business and society. She has supported so many others on their own creative paths, and we can’t wait to welcome Susan to the stage to share her creative journey with the Cannes Lions audience in June.”
Hoffman commented, “It’s hard to believe I was the first female creative at W+K. People ask me why I’m still here. My answer–Dan [Wieden] and David [Kennedy]. They cared about the people and the power of creativity, and not themselves. Giving people a voice was their mantra. To quote Dan, ‘The biggest advantage you have in this business is your own voice.’ This belief gave not only me but everyone who has come through the doors of W+K support and confidence to find our own voices. These diverse voices are our secret sauce and what makes great work. Dan and David passed us the baton to inspire more people to understand this. Don’t drop it.”
Hoffman will be honored with the Lion of St. Mark on Friday, June 23, at the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity. She will also speak on stage during the Lion of St. Mark session. Cannes Lions runs from June 19-23.
