A global
powerhouse

30,000+ people
150+ offices
64 countries

J. Walter Thompson traces its origins to the Carlton & Smith agency, which opened its doors in 1864, one of the first known advertising agencies in the U.S.

In 1908, J. Walter Thompson made history by hiring Helen Lansdowne Resor, the ad industry's first female creative director.

In 1962, J. Walter Thompson helped invent the grilled cheese sandwich as part of a campaign for Kraft.

In 1999, J. Walter Thompson entered the Guinness Book of World Records with the first global ad for Ford broadcast simultaneously on every TV channel around the world.

In 2012, J. Walter Thompson sent a KitKat to space — to show that even the fearless Felix Baumgartner could use a break from his skydive from the edge of space.

In 1923, John Orr Young and Raymond Rubicam established a small advertising agency in Philadelphia.

In 1926, the company moved to New York as a condition of securing a contract with the newly formed Jell-O company. Soon the company moved into offices at 285 Madison Avenue, which remained the company's location for 87 years.

In 1955, Roy Eaton was hired by Y&R — becoming the first Black professional in the advertising industry. In his first two years as a copywriter and composer at Y&R, he produced 75% of all the music for the agency.

In the 1960s, Y&R produced the first color television commercial.

In 1975, Y&R created the classic BAND-AID Brand television commercial jingle “I am Stuck on BAND-AID Brand”. Written by famed entertainer Barry Manilow and starring John Travolta and Terry Garr, the catchy tune remains one of the most recognized jingles in advertising history.

In 1958, direct marketer Lester Wunderman, alongside his brother Irving Wunderman, and colleagues Ed Ricotta and Harry Kline, opened Wunderman, Ricotta & Klein. Founder Lester Wunderman is widely considered to be the creator of modern-day direct marketing — a term he first used in 1961.

In 1958, Wunderman developed the American Express Card and first customer rewards program.

In the 1960s, Wunderman revolutionised the publishing industry with the introduction of personalised magazine subscription cards. In 1963, Wunderman helped the U.S. Postal Service develop, promote and introduce the Zip Code to all Americans.

In the 1970’s, Wunderman pioneered the use of the toll-free 1-800 telephone number for customer ordering.

In the 1980’s and1990’s, Wunderman created direct mail campaigns for Columbia House, a music and video club. The campaigns were so successful that Columbia House became the largest direct marketer of music and videos in the world.

In 1992, VML launched under Kansas City advertising veterans John Valentine, Scott McCormick and Crag Ligibel.

VML’s first client was Northwest Airlines, and the partnership led VML to take up office space in the Kansas City Downtown Airport, where it is still located today.

VML created the first-ever website for Sprint, which is now T-Mobile.

VML led Wendy’s to iconic status on social media with its unique social voice. In 2017, a Twitter plea from a Nevada teen for a year of free chicken nuggets from Wendy's became the most retweeted post of all time.

The VMLY&R Foundation, created in 2005 as an employee-giving program, has donated more than $3 million in charitable contributions.