1576 collapses in wake of losses

Campaign, Friday, 15 February 2008, 12:00am,

After 14 years of business, the Scottish agency 1576 has closed its doors, leaving 22 employees out of a job.

The agency has struggled recently following a period of destabilisation, which started with the loss of its Glenmorangie and Alliance Trust accounts in 2007.

This was exacerbated last June, when it lost its flagship VisitScotland account to The Union. Shortly afterwards, Adrian Jeffrey, a founder, quit to launch Mightysmall, while Gary Smith, the joint managing director, also left to start his own agency, called Hush.

David Reid, a founder of 1576, said: "It started a time of reflection; people started to think about going in different directions. It then became difficult to manage clients."

The agency was launched in 1994 by three former Leith employees: Jeffrey, Reid (both creatives) and Mark Gorman, the managing director.

Despite losing its first client, Spectacle, on its first day of business, 1576 quickly picked up accounts such as Direct Line and Standard Life. Since then, it has cemented a reputation for adding creative muscle to the Scottish ad industry.

The agency has picked up a host of awards including Grands Prix in the Roses and the IPA Effectiveness Awards.

This article was first published on Campaign