Cheil’s Malcolm Poynton Talks Ideas That Move

Regarded as one of the world’s top digital minds when it comes to advertising creativity, New Zealand-born Malcolm Poynton, global chief creative officer at Cheil Worldwide, has built teams responsible for campaigns like British Airways’ Johnny Foreigner and Samsung’s #BeFearless. Poynton spoke with The Hindu’s Chitra Narayanan about how advertising has evolved, and about the importance of a brand’s role in society.

“Between the factory and the consumption, advertising has always been the glue that binds brands and consumers,” Poynton says. “How that glue sticks and where it sticks – the shapes shift according to the crevices and gaps that are created with what consumers connect their lives with, whether it is walking down the street, seeing an Out of Home installation, or whether it is through a traditional TVC or through Instagram or WeChat.

“For us ideas that move is about moving hearts, minds, and brands. You have to move business.”

London-based Poynton is a former member of the New Zealand Yachting Team, recognised by KEA as a ‘World Class New Zealander’, former board member of the UK’s Institute of Contemporary Art, Patron of the Royal Academy of Arts, C.A.L.M. and a member of the Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences.

Original article by Chitra Narayanan, The Hindu, August 7, 2022.