Perhaps in articulating its “Instinctive Generosity” ethos, Dentsu International- a multinational media and digital marketing communications company headquartered in London, United Kingdom, and a wholly owned subsidiary of the Japanese advertising and public relations firm Dentsu, has contributed the sum of £250,000 to the Red Cross Ukraine Appeal Fund to support those providing critical humanitarian relief in the Ukraine crisis.
Wendy Clark, Global CEO, dentsu international, Director and Executive Officer, Dentsu Group Inc. took to her LinkedIn to make the announcement earlier today.
The former DDB worldwide CEO wrote, “Today we contributed £250,000 to the Red Cross Ukraine Appeal Fund to support those providing critical humanitarian relief in the Ukraine crisis. We stand in loving support and solidarity with our affiliate associates in Ukraine and our impacted teams in Russia and Central Europe. You are endlessly on our minds and in our hearts….”
This action aligns with Wendy’s message on the company’s website on its policy on doing business: “At dentsu, our ambition is to be a beacon of constant innovation and a force for good. As champions for meaningful progress, we help clients navigate and thrive in a world of change. We believe that the progressive, human centric solutions we create can have powerful returns for both business and society, however, we cannot deliver this without also providing clear accountability on how we operate.”
This donation is coming despite the fact that the invasion of Ukraine by Russian military forces on 24 February, is projected to affect global agencies like Dentsu International variously. For instance, the Japanese government’s decision to restrict travel from Russia to Japan, for example, might well impact Dentsu Inc’s operations in Moscow, which have expanded in recent years. In 2020, it embarked on a joint venture with OKS Group in order to grow its business across the Eurasia region, and Carat, Dentsu X, Posterscope, iProspect and Isobar all currently operate in Russia.
Further sanctions might begin to hit agency clients within the country, potentially endangering client relationships, according to experts. “As an ad agency involved with any of these companies, they will have their own repercussions in money exchanges and the changing value of money as sanctions bite more; possibly some economic actors in media and transport will come under sanctions, and thus force them to find other local partners for certain ad functions,” one such expert noted.