2025: A Remarkable Year

An impressive lineage of names, each of whom has shaped TD into what it is today. A unique agency, and perhaps the only one that is a brand in its own right. It is an honour to be entrusted with this role.

In 2006, I sold my agency, Zappwerk, to Total Design (then known as Total Identity). Since then, I have had the opportunity to experience the role of Managing Director firsthand. For eighteen years, I was able to observe it from the inside. And yet, stepping into the role myself proved to be an entirely new experience. A year ago, I said I wanted to work smarter, not harder, but the truth is, I ended up working more hours again. In that sense, I’m not quite there yet.

All the more reason to learn from this first year, and to reflect on everything that has happened. We simplified our organisational structure, became a B Corp, completely renewed our office, joined the DDD, and strengthened our connection with the BNO. We reinvented ourselves and brought TD Cascade, TD Zuiderlicht, and Total Design closer together as one, supported by a new commercial approach, a new visual identity, a new website, and a sharpened positioning. And last but not least: we won more awards than ever before. A great deal has happened.

All of this took place in a challenging market. Clients are cautious, budgets are under pressure, and assignments are getting smaller. At the start of the year, we unfortunately lost a number of pitches to strong competitors. Especially in Amsterdam, competition is fierce. A clear signal that we needed to raise our own game—and thankfully, we are doing just that. We’re winning again. And, frankly, that is also what our name demands of us.

Then there is AI. In our industry, it sometimes seems to be the only topic of conversation. International agency conglomerates like WPP are already feeling the impact. Mark Zuckerberg has suggested that agencies may no longer be needed in the future. And more than a year ago, Alexander Klöpping demonstrated on Dutch television that it is already possible to build an agency entirely out of AI agents—fully virtual. We have moved rapidly from the public adoption of ChatGPT in 2024 to the era of agentic AI. Not only firms like McKinsey, but also a wave of new agencies, are racing to offer the latest solutions.

And us? We take a step back first. As strategic-creative professionals do. We reconnect with our essence and link it to context and the future, just as we have done for 62 years. Not by doing what everyone else does, but by doing it better. We focus on optimizing processes and ways of working, and we help our clients do the same. This allows us to dedicate our energy where it truly makes an impact, rather than simply reacting to what happens in the moment. At the start of 2026, we’ll show how this approach positions us – and our clients – for the future.

We are already anticipating a new context and a new future. By becoming much more ourselves, we can make that leap forward. Not by dismissing our legacy as something outdated, but by rediscovering its value. The value of what makes our people unique. The strength of our team. And although new colleagues will join and others will move on, our essence is embedded in the company itself.