Boarish Brilliance: Inside Iris’ Bold Rebrand and Renewed Creative Charge

In a sea of agency mergers, diluted identities and performance-first metrics, Iris is making a decisive move in the opposite direction. Under the creative leadership of global chief creative officer Menno Kluin, the agency has rebranded with teeth – embracing its original rebellious spirit and doubling down on brand-building as the true driver of business impact.

From the symbolism of a wild boar to the provocation of a Latin war cry, this isn’t just a new look – it’s a statement of intent.

Global CCO Menno Kluin speaks about the philosophy behind the rebrand, how Iris is navigating between scale and soul, and why creative agencies must remember their most human foundations if they want to stay relevant.

LBB> Why was now the right time for Iris to rebrand, and what specific industry conditions or internal milestones made it imperative?

Menno> In a world where legacy agency brands are easily merged away, we decided to double down on it. Talent and clients are still drawn to agency brands. This is a full overhaul to fully embrace what made Iris the special place to begin with: an outsider spirit, not bound by tradition, focused on true solutions and a willingness to be humble, listen to consumers and do stuff that they really want. This rebrand is meant to embody that spirit, which we feel is needed because we all need a reminder of why this industry is great, why agencies exist and what the best clients actually truly need. Ian Millner, our global chairman, has a clear vision of what success looks like in today's market and we are all on that journey to transform the company. This is the first step.

LBB> How does the new positioning — ‘Participate or Perish’ — reflect Iris’ long-held values, and how does it evolve the agency’s original ethos for today’s market?

Menno> We have not changed our long standing philosophies because we believe them to be the right ones. This just adds a bit more tension to it, which we believe holds true for many clients. They are seeing the negative impact of not being out there with the right tools to engage meaningfully with their consumers but often lack the resources and funding to do it. We also help them build the business cases to unlock that so that the brands they run are set up for long-term growth and health.

LBB> In what ways does this rebrand respond to the growing cultural demand for brands — and agencies — to show up meaningfully in people’s lives rather than just deliver performance marketing?

Menno> The best new brands have a holistic view of the consumer’s media consumption and know when to say what, in order to capture, sustain and convert them. Our model is based around standing apart, true brand-led thinking, riding culture, using communities to invite your brand into their thinking and move behaviour.

As that is the true end goal of it all. While we love stunts and bold activations, we go beyond this to help brands earn a lasting place in culture and drive long-term brand relevance. The reality of most brands is more complicated than just a spike of attention, just as it's more complicated than just hammering your message over and over through performance.

LBB> How does Iris’s identity as a ‘global creative micro-network’ position it uniquely between the giants and the boutiques — and what kind of clients does this hybrid structure serve?

Menno> It gives us the backbone, specialists of a big place, but the creative and personal approach of a small place. This is appealing for any clients that feel like they are getting lost in the big holdco chair shuffle and the smaller clients that feel like they need a bit more rigor and access to specialisms that drive growth. We have a clear idea of the clients we want to work with and we are building the agency to reflect that. We like to say: big enough to be dangerous, small enough to be creative.

LBB> Tell me about the process behind landing the new visual and verbal identity — particularly centring it around the wild boar and Latin rallying cry?

Menno> We started out exploring all the usual routes – eyes, Greek goddesses, the expected stuff. But we realised this rebrand needed to go deeper. It had to capture the true spirit of the place.

That spirit is best reflected in the wild boar, which is a symbol of strength and tenacity, charging headfirst into the unknown. The rider brings the relentless optimism we bring to every challenge, while the horn signals exactly what we do for our clients.

LBB> What does Iris’s new look and voice say about the kind of future the agency — and the industry at large — should be aiming to build?

Menno> Brands still matter most. It's actually the foundational element of our industry, and some of us just have forgotten. No matter what systems and tools you build, consumers are just infinitely more complex than that. No matter what AI tools you have available, work needs to have humanity, flaws and randomness in them to truly resonate. Something that you can’t replicate with a formula. As Dan Wieden said, excellence is not a formula. It ain't mathematics. It's jazz. The tools are necessary, but expression, emotion, randomness and humanity is what makes the best work great and iconic.