Interview with Kristaps Silins, CEO of McCANN Group in Riga, Brand Strategist
In previous rankings, other agencies dominated. Before this year’s results were announced, did you feel that “maybe this is our moment,” or was the win a surprise even to you?
In previous years, we were often more surprised not to receive the Baltic Agency of the Year title. This time, there were clear signs. Our exports doubled, we remained the only agency in the region consistently winning Effie Awards Europe, including a Gold last year, and the team continued to strengthen. We plan several years ahead, so the focus is already on what’s next.
Last year McCann Riga ranked #9 in the Baltic Agency Ranking; this year you are #1. What, in your view, was the decisive change – in mindset, structure, or ambition – that made this leap possible?
The work itself didn’t fundamentally change. What changed was discipline. For the first time, we treated documentation as part of the creative process, not an afterthought. Every project was structured and captured as it happened. When the festival season arrived, the work was already there. The creative standard stayed the same; our consistency matured.
What was the most difficult leadership decision you made over the past year that, in hindsight, clearly proved to be the right one?
We promoted seven people to partner level across the group, sharing both equity and responsibility. This goes against the traditional agency model in the Baltics, but we see ourselves at the beginning of a much longer journey. Ownership is a tool. Now I personally own less than half of the leading brand strategy firm White Label which I founded a decade ago. Yet, I have never been more amazed by impact of our work on client’s business than this year. We prefer to own a smaller part of something that can scale far beyond what any individual could build alone.
McCann is a global network, yet this win came from Riga. Where do local identity and global standards complement each other most naturally – and where do they sometimes clash?
Riga is an address. Our standards are global. By tripling group revenue and becoming the most export-oriented agency in the market, we’ve spend the past decade working far beyond the Baltics, with current clients in China, across Europe and the Middle East. The tension between local identity and global ambition is productive. It keeps us slightly ahead of the curve.
Does thinking about awards inevitably influence idea development? How do you avoid the trap of “jury-friendly” creativity?
Being the Agency of the Year in Latvia for the eight consecutive years, we’ve learned that our strongest awarded work is never created for awards. It’s created to solve real problems. That’s how we operate. Awards are a byproduct of consistent work, not a design brief.
Looking at this year’s TOP 8 agencies overall, do you see a shared Baltic creative DNA, or is the region better described as a mix of very different creative schools?
Baltic agencies succeed through ingenuity rather than scale. Without the option of relying on celebrity or large budgets, ideas must work harder. This has created a culture where creativity and strategy are inseparable, and where relevance is achieved through precision rather than excess.
What is your vision for the future of your agency group?
Since taking over McCANN Riga in 2016, the objective remains simple: to make Riga a place associated with globally relevant ideas. Not by imitation, but by invention.
