Ithra Appoints Impact BBDO as Creative Agency of Record

IMPACT BBDO has announced its new partnership with Ithra, the leading Saudi cultural and creative destination for talent development and cross-cultural experiences. Ithra, The King Abdulaziz Center for World Culture, which means "enrichment" in Arabic, has as main pillars culture, creativity, community, art, and knowledge. Ithra opened in 2018 and was built as part of Saudi Aramco’s vision to be a window of global experiences for empowering creativity and celebrating human potential. The centre also offers top workshops, performances, and events and is driven by a vision of a future in which Saudi Arabia is a beacon for knowledge and creativity.

Wadha Alnafjan, head of marketing & brand management at Ithra, said: “IMPACT BBDO is one of the most awarded creative agencies in the world. We welcome the group to Ithra as our lead creative agency and look forward to working together to achieve our ambitions and brand objectives.”

Ghassan Kassabji, Impact BBDO’s chief growth officer for MENA, said: “Ithra is a unique cultural destination that is actively contributing to creativity and talent development through many activities and programmes. We are very proud to be appointed as its creative agency of record to share with the world their inspiring story and empowering activities.”

Ali Rez, chief creative officer for IMPACT BBDO MENAP, said: “It is an honour to be part of Ithra’s incredible journey, and collaborate with the centre to spread creativity, culture, inspiration and knowledge.”

IMPACT BBDO is the most awarded creative communications agency in the region and has been building brands in Saudi Arabia for over 35 years, creating impactful work and key alliances to accelerate the development of the communications, marketing, and advertising industries in the Kingdom and across the region.