Paul Venables

If Paul were talking with you right now, he would surely point out that the agency’s big, sweeping, trademarkable philosophy has nothing to do with buzz generation, media agnosticism, or content creation, but is simply “do right by people.” Those good intentions and the commitment to doing right by the agency’s clients, employees, and consumers have helped Paul and his team attract some of the nicest, most talented people in advertising, as well as big-time clients like Scout Motors, Chipotle, and Opendoor.

This philosophy, paired with Paul’s steadfast commitment to independence, has driven both him and Venables Bell + Partners to great accomplishments. VB+P earned the Titanium Lion at the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity for its groundbreaking REI #OptOutside campaign. The agency has also been named a Fast Company Most Innovative Company, recognized as Adweek’s Breakthrough Agency of the Year, and included on Ad Age’s A-List of the top 10 U.S. agencies as well as its Best Places to Work list. In recognition of his career achievements and lasting influence on the industry, Paul himself received the Hal Riney Icons of Marketing Award.

Before founding VB+P in 2001, Paul was Co-Creative Director, Associate Partner, and heir apparent at Goodby, Silverstein & Partners. During his six-plus years there, he managed more than $400 million in business and earned numerous industry accolades for his work with clients such as Pacific Bell, Discover Card, Porsche, Nike, and Netflix. Earlier in his career, Paul was an Associate Creative Director at Korey, Kay & Partners, a copywriter at McCaffrey and McCall, and a telephone receptionist at a small New York agency. He had attempted to start his career as a telephone receptionist at a large New York agency but failed their typing tests.