By Lawrence Palmer, Managing Director of WK360
1. WK360 has evolved from a family-run print business into a modern creative production agency. Looking back, what do you think has been the key to the company surviving and growing for more than four decades?
“There isn’t one magic answer, but the business has been built on layers of good decisions made consistently over time.
“Good succession matters when handing over the reins through generations. As one generation tires, the next can take the business forward with fresh energy, and I think this has been key to our success over the last four decades.
“Hard work and dedication are also essential. Even when things appear to be going well, you must still plan for challenges because, in business, they always come.
“I’ve run the business through the financial crash, the collapse of bricks-and-mortar retail, Covid and now the global impact of conflict in the Middle East. I couldn’t control any of those things, but I could control how I responded to them and planned for likely outcomes.
“Looking after staff is another key principle. The team at WK360 has an average service length of around ten years, which is unusual in agency life. That consistency benefits our clients because they retain knowledge, continuity and long-term understanding of their brands.
“Finally, our clients are our bedrock. Honesty and integrity matter. Many clients have stayed with us for decades because they value working with a family business that treats their brand as carefully as they do themselves.”
2. What have four decades in creative production taught you about what makes brands truly last?
“Brands that last are the ones that stay honest and remain consistent in their brand principles wherever they are experienced.
“Red Bull is a great example. The tagline ‘Red Bull gives you wings’ is reflected in everything the brand does, from extreme sports sponsorship to the tone of its advertising. You would never confuse its brand personality with that of Coca Cola because every touchpoint reinforces the same story.
“For most businesses, especially in B2B where budgets are smaller, consistency matters even more. A brand is not just a logo — it is the way the business behaves, communicates and delivers every single day.
“The businesses that last are the ones that understand this and stay disciplined about it over time.”
3. You’ve worked with major household brands across multiple markets and channels. In your experience, what separates brands that build long-term trust from those that struggle to stay relevant?
“Brands are layered. Most start with a good idea, but trust is built over time through the experience people have with it.
“easyJet started with a simple idea; cutting out the middleman and allowing customers to book directly with the airline. Over time, that grew into a broader brand built around affordability, accessibility and a different customer experience to that offered by traditional airlines.
“Brands fail when they stop delivering on their promises or lose clarity in what they stand for. Often, businesses confuse trends with strategy and end up chasing short-term attention instead of building long-term trust.
“The brands that stay relevant are the ones with a clear story, a consistent customer experience and strong brand assets across every channel and touchpoint.”
4. Marketing has become faster, more fragmented and more technology-driven over the years. How has that changed the demands placed on creative production partners?
“I’ve been in the industry since the late 80s and have seen enormous technological change over that time. The pattern is usually the same; technology makes us more productive, but at the same time dramatically increases the demand for content.
“When digital photography and the internet arrived, we lost parts of the business that had previously been highly profitable, but demand for digital imagery and post-production work increased massively.
“For one client, which we still work with today, we used to retouch around 300 shots per season. That is now closer to 1,800, often with similar budgets and tighter deadlines.
“AI is now driving another shift. The challenge going forward will be maintaining authenticity, consistency and trust while brands produce more content than ever before.
“Ironically, I think AI may even help drive a resurgence in print because people will increasingly value what feels real and tangible.”
5. WK360 recently underwent a rebrand itself. What did that experience teach you about how businesses can evolve without losing their identity?
“Our challenge was broadening the business’ appeal beyond retail into FMCG and manufacturing sectors.
“We already had the experience and capability, but our branding and messaging did not fully communicate that. The rebrand was really about expressing ourselves more clearly rather than changing who we are.
“The important thing is that the fundamentals stayed the same. We still invest heavily in our people, technology and innovation, and we continue developing software solutions that improve efficiency for both ourselves and our clients.
“A successful rebrand should clarify your identity, not replace it.”
6. AI and automation are becoming increasingly embedded within marketing workflows. Where do you think technology genuinely improves creative production, and where is human judgement still irreplaceable?
“AI is one of those technologies surrounded by a huge amount of noise, but I believe it will eventually become like broadband – absolutely essential but also a commodity.
“It is an incredibly powerful assistant. It can help analyse information, solve problems faster and speed up tasks that previously took days. I use it personally to help work through complex workflow, business and brand challenges.
“At WK360 we have built AI into 360Orbit, our asset creation management system. One of the biggest benefits is improving briefing quality because poor briefing is often the main cause of poor results and repeated revisions.
“We also use AI to visualise ideas much faster than traditional hand scamps, helping clients see concepts quickly without huge time investment.
“Where human judgement remains irreplaceable is in understanding authenticity, consistency and emotional connection. AI can generate content, but it still struggles to truly understand how a brand should feel and behave over time.”
7. WK360 was involved in the original easyJet branding during the airline’s early growth phase. What did that experience teach you about scaling a brand successfully?
“easyJet was fascinating. Stelios Haji-Ioannou, founder of the business, had been to large London agencies and felt the results lacked personality and differentiation, and in fact made easyJet look like British Airways or one of the big US carriers.
“When he came to White Knight, as we were known then, the airline was just starting out with a single 20-year-old Boeing 737 flying from Luton to Glasgow.
“The core idea was simple; remove the travel agent, allow customers to book direct and make flying affordable for more people.
“From there, the brand became deliberately bold and disruptive. We developed the bright orange identity, the logo, the aircraft graphics, and even the orange sweatshirts worn by cabin crew.
“The lesson from easyJet was that scaling works when the brand and business model are completely aligned. Once the formula works, consistency and speed of execution become critical.”
8. Looking ahead, what does the next phase of growth for WK360 look like, and how do you see the business evolving over the next five to ten years?
“I think the next ten years will be both the most exciting and the most challenging period we have seen.
“AI will accelerate the creation of new businesses and new brands, but many of those businesses will still struggle because branding and marketing are not the same thing, which is a mistake many companies continue to make.
“Marketing is about channels and visibility. Branding is about trust, consistency and the experience people have with your business over time.
“I think we will also see more companies appointing brand-focused professionals onto Boards to counterbalance the purely financial bias that often exists in businesses. When organisations hit difficult times, financial professionals will naturally look to cut costs first, whereas brand teams understand that if you damage the brand in the process, you can destroy the long-term value of the business itself. Brand is where much of the real value in a company truly lies.
“Stelios understood that. Although he no longer runs easyJet, he still owns the brand, and that continues to fund many of his philanthropic activities today.
“At WK360, we will continue investing in technology, automation and software development, but always with the aim of helping brands become more consistent, more efficient and more authentic. We want the businesses that work with us to have complete confidence that their brand is being looked after by a company that understands the value and responsibility that comes with managing it properly.
“The brands that succeed over the next decade will be the ones that remain relevant, disciplined and consistent in how they tell their story.”
