J. Walter Thompson

Once the world's largest and most influential advertising agency by billings for five decades, JWT was ultimately absorbed into VML via the Wunderman Thompson merger, ending its independent brand identity.

J. Walter Thompson, which ultimately became part of VML following a series of mergers, was an advertising holding company incorporated in 1896 that grew into one of the most influential agencies in the world before being merged with Wunderman to form Wunderman Thompson in 2018, and then combined with VMLY&R to create VML (announced in 2023, effective January 2024).¹ JWT was among the first agencies to employ writers and artists to craft advertisements on behalf of clients, and it was the first to offer a broad suite of advertising services including copy, layout, package design, trademark development, and rudimentary market research.¹ A key milestone in its data and behavioral approach was the hiring of John B. Watson in 1920, pioneering the use of behavioral psychology in advertising.² Under leaders including James Walter Thompson and Stanley Resor, the agency expanded globally to operate more than 200 offices across 90 countries, leading the industry in billings for five decades.² In June 2018, then-CEO Gustavo Martinez parted ways with JWT and parent company WPP following the settlement of a sexual harassment case.¹ Source 1: wikipedia.org — J. Walter Thompson Source 2: startupintros.com — J. Walter Thompson Company: Funding, Team & Investors