Martin set to launch The Gate into Scotland
IAS Smarts is set to be realigned as Pete Martin and Rob Morrice, the founding partners of Smarts, go their separate ways, with the Scottish advertising presence becoming part of The Gate Worldwide, another advertising brand owned by IAS Smart’s parent company, Media Square.
The move will see Morrice concentrate on business-to-business briefs through the Manchester office, while Martin will focus his energies on creative communications in Scotland.
“With the Scottish creative services and advertising division working on consumer accounts, it makes more sense to change the brand, but it still stays within the same legal entity of Media Square,” confirmed Morrice.
Martin previously worked for The Gate while in New York before returning in 2004 to IAS Smarts.
Both Martin and Helen Hourston, director of creative services, will lead the agency under The Gate banner in Scotland, while the PR presence will remain known as IAS Smarts.
“The biggest benefits of this move will be that The Gate in London and The Gate in Scotland will be able to work as one brand, targetting some of the bigger Scottish firms and offering a London and Scottish integrated service, particularly in the financial sector as that is The Gate’s historic specialty,” said Morrice.