Booms Shakes Aprils Biggest Moves And Boldest Launches

Creative Boom: News Creative Industry Booms & Shakes: April's biggest moves and boldest launches A landmark leadership transition at Verve, a wave of creative hires, two big sports wins and a studio that marked its birthday in its own handwriting. Written By: Tom May 22 April 2026 Gung Ho Welcome to Booms & Shakes, our monthly round-up of the hires, promotions, partnerships and stories making waves across the creative world. April has arrived, and there's so much to talk about. A major founder transition after 35 years. Social-first agencies expanding at pace. Hiring sprees and fresh account wins.

And running quietly beneath all of it — in a custom typeface, a series of sold-out workshops and a new video platform, and more— is a growing conviction that craft matters more now than ever. Here's everyone and everything that's been making noise this month. Transitions, promotions & new hires Ronan Traynor steps back at Verve The most significant transition of the month belongs to Verve, a multi-award-winning experiential agency and certified B Corp, working with Diageo, Google, Coca-Cola, LinkedIn and TikTok across offices in Dublin, London, Amsterdam and Singapore.

After 35 years at the helm, founder Ronan Traynor is moving into the role of executive chair. Barry Muldowney, who's been with the agency for more than a decade, most recently as COO, will now step up to the role of group managing director. Ronan Traynor (left) and Barry Muldowney Residence formalises its creative leadership Global creative network Residence—whose recent months have included the acquisition of OK COOL and the rebrand of VTProDesign to ACRONYM— has made two leadership appointments. Ben Langsfeld, a founding member of BUCK, has been named CCO.

And Orion Tait, co-founder of both Residence and BUCK, steps from CCO into the newly defined role of creative chair. M+C Saatchi Talk appoints Callum Powell M+C Saatchi Talk has appointed Callum Powell as head of brand PR and influence, a newly created role. The agency describes the move as a shift from storytelling to "story-making": creating culturally relevant moments rather than merely amplifying them. He'll work across clients, including Formula E, Revlon and Burberry Beauty Global, and report to managing director Amaya Alvarez.

Callum Powell and Amaya Alvarez DEPT appoints Roy Armale DEPT—which is kind of a hybrid of creative agency, digital product studio and tech consultancy—has appointed Roy Armale as chief product officer, joining from WPP. Along with over 15 years of experience, he has a postgraduate degree in artificial intelligence for business from Oxford's Saïd Business School. That could come in handy, as DEPT already generates 50% of its revenue from AI-enabled services and manages more than $5 billion in digital media spend.

GUT Europe promotes across the board Creative agency GUT Europe has announced a wave of senior promotions across its Madrid and Amsterdam hubs, elevating key talent into executive creative director, creative director and chief strategy officer roles, alongside new leadership in growth and production. The moves reflect a deliberate effort to build a more connected European offering. A network investing in itself, rather than recruiting outwards, is usually a good sign. Left: Gut Amsterdam. L-r, top row: Alex Romero, Cathal Tolton, Marina Perta, Pamela Bianda, Lorenzo Prati, (bottom row) Bruno Steffen, Eva Rausch and Gaston Gual. Gut Madrid.

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The article discusses significant trends and leadership changes in the creative industry, which could influence brand strategies, making it impactful and relevant, though the themes of authenticity and craftsmanship are becoming more common.