October 13, 2026

Publicis Grew 5% and Announced a New Race for Clients

Publicis reported 5% revenue growth — to $4.4 billion in Q3. Arthur Sadoun told ADWEEK that conflict of interest no longer prevents direct agency appointments.

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With Fewer Big Holdcos, Arthur Sadoun Says Client Conflict Is No Longer a DealbreakerAI-generated

Publicis Groupe's revenue for the third quarter amounted to $4.4 billion (€3.8 billion), up 5% from a year earlier. The holding company's CEO Arthur Sadoun said in an interview with ADWEEK that "a new race" is beginning between Publicis, Omnicom and WPP — and its rules have changed. Conflict of interest, long considered an insurmountable obstacle when choosing an agency, is no longer a decisive factor.

What has changed in the market

Sadoun's logic is simple. There are fewer large holding companies, and their specializations are more obvious. Advertisers now "manage conflict brilliantly," he noted, because they are already doing so with other partners in the marketing ecosystem. AORs (Agency of Record — an agency that serves a client on an ongoing basis) are increasingly appointed directly, without open tenders.

This is a shift. Previously, a simple overlap of categories — two competitors in the same holding's portfolio — could cost an agency a contract. Now, according to Sadoun, clients distinguish the strengths of each of the three players and "have a clearer understanding of who they want to work with."

What the numbers say

Public reporting backs up the CEO's rhetoric:

Q3 revenue — $4.4 billion (€3.8 billion), up 5% year over year;
expected revenue from new business won this year — $465 million (€400 million).

The $465 million figure deserves attention on its own. This is the volume of contracts won before the interview was published, meaning it is an already locked-in result for the year. For comparison: a few years ago, tender victories of this scale were spread over several quarters and accompanied by high-profile pitches. Now, if Sadoun is to be believed, a significant share of decisions are made behind closed doors rather than in competitions.

What this changes for advertisers and agencies

A practical question arises: what does this trend give both sides of the market? For clients — speed and predictability. Direct AOR appointment without a pitch saves months that usually go into briefs, shortlists and negotiations. For agencies — lower costs for tender procedures, which in some cases consumed a noticeable share of the contract's future margin.

There is also a downside. The less frequently open competitions are held, the higher the barriers to entry for independent agencies, for which pitches historically provided a chance to lure budgets away from the giants. Consolidation — the reduction in the number of players that Sadoun himself speaks of — works in favor of incumbents, the existing contractors.

Forecast

The three holding companies — Publicis, Omnicom, WPP — remain in a position where it is easier for an advertiser to categorize each by its strengths than to hold comparative bidding. Sadoun clearly expects that clarity of positioning will convert into direct appointments. The quarter's data does not contradict this bet so far: 5% growth and €400 million in new business is an argument that is hard to dispute with a tender procedure.

For the rest of the market, the conclusion is trivial. The winner is not the one who pitches better, but the one the client can name.

Source: Adweek

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