Bertille Toledano, BETC: Building Creative Powerhouses Around The World

By Mark Tungate

When Bertille Toledano was named President of Havas Creative Network, it affirmed the success of BETC – and her vision for what comes next.

Bertille Toledano has literally been a headline maker in recent weeks, gazing from the cover of Stratégies magazine in France after being named President of Havas Creative Network – and also CEO of Havas Middle East, which offers an important clue to an emerging story.

But first, her new role at the head of Havas Creative Network. What does it mean to her? “I think first of all it’s a recognition of BETC and its success within the Havas network,” she says.

This is no small thing, she observes, as Havas also includes remarkable agencies like Uncommon and DON (Argentina), not to mention the Havas Village of creative outposts around the world. But it’s true that BETC has scale, impact and prestige. Bertille points out that BETC has 1,200 people in its iconic building in the Paris suburb of Pantin alone. “In fact, our strategy from the beginning was to build a world-class agency based in Pantin.”

The BETC name has been extended to London, Shanghai, Sao Paulo and New York, where Maison BETC specializes in luxury brands. The latest imprint is in Saudi Arabia, which we’ll get to in a moment.

Powerhouses and satellites

 The second raison d’être for her new role, Bertille says, concerns her vision for the group’s creative stategy. What she sees is a handful of creative powerhouses in key zones around the world – each with their own production facilities – supported by smaller satellite agencies “that are very good at social media, very good at influence, very well rooted in the cultural landscape, with strong strategists.”

She smiles, acknowledging her roots as a creative strategist. “I still believe in strategic planning, you know.”

She doesn’t see the relevance today of a bulky network of 80-plus agencies. “Clients don’t buy 80 agencies around the world. They buy creative excellence.” She wants to work in close partnership with big, ambitious clients, she states. “Because the ambition of my client is my passport for world-class work.”

Bertille underlines that advertising is a people business, at the end of the day, so the powerhouses should have charismatic leadership. “This job is a people job. It’s not a network job. You follow the people. When you’ve got a great team with a great attitude, suddenly it’s magnetic. People want to join them. That’s how Rémi (Babinet) and Mercedes (Erra) built BETC in Paris – by embracing a large amount of people with a wide variety of skills.”

It’s also important to her that these powerhouses and their satellites are not only multicultural, but skilled at working within local culture. Already, she notes, people from 33 different nationalities work at the building in Pantin.

“If you don’t understand the local insights, if you’re not close to the community and the way people are eating, dancing, playing or beautifying themselves, then you won’t be capable of delivering world-class work that is also culturally relevant.”

A new creative realm

Which brings us to the Middle East, where a new creative powerhouse is currently emerging. Havas has a strong cultural link with the region in that it operates there in partnership with the local Chalhoub Group, which specialises in marketing, distribution and retail. The relationshop has existed since 2007.

The latest chapter started when BETC and Havas jointly pitched for the Saudi Tourist Authority, first in Dubai and then in Riyadh. The Kingdom was opening up to tourism, a process that began in 2019. The result was a film called “This Land is Calling”.

A second cinematic opus, “I Stayed For More”, followed – with a third to come.

Bertille, for her part, was fascinated by what she found in Saudi Arabia. A place where 70 per cent of the population is under 35. Where women can now work, have a bank account, and dine alone in a restaurant. “I joke with some of the young guys there,” she says, “better watch out, because the women are coming up behind you and they’re hard workers, so you’re gonna be in trouble.”

More seriously, she found a market that matched her vision. “People there are dynamic, they’re eager for development, and they love creativity because they are ambitious people. They literally want the Middle East to be the centre of the world. And they are traditionally great storytellers.”

Tourism, technology, and culture

People who don’t know the country can be disparaging about it, she says. “But the reality is that they are highly educated, they understand technology, and in many ways they already have both feet in the future.”

BETC has since won the launch of Riyadh Air, Saudi Arabia’s brand new national carrier, which launched its inaugural flight to London Heathrow in October. By 2030 it should serve more than 100 destinations worldwide, supporting the Saudi Tourist Authority’s global vision. “It’s a technology-driven company,” says Bertille. “Other airlines are going to look old-fashioned in comparison.”

Another new client in the region is the company developing Diriyah, known as “the birthplace of Saudi Arabia” and featuring astonishing 300-year-old mudbrick architecture. This will now be joined by an infrastructure of luxury hotels and museums that will transform it for tourists. “It’s a cultural project, which is something BETC does very well.”

Bertille says the agency won over these clients with a mixture of humbleness, curiosity – and of course craft. “We believe there are opportunities for us there. One day their level of investment might fall, because they are currently spending a lot of money. But we are prepared to invest our creativity.”