In a bid to grow its US operations, Uncommon has hired an international ECD – California-born Sanam Petri – to work with founder Nils Leonard on the creative output, which will presumably include the agency’s first British Airways campaign.
Petri was a creative director at Wieden + Kennedy London from 2013-2017, and before that spent seven years at R/GA, both in London and New York. Her advertising career has been mainly focused on working with Nike at both agencies, and she was also responsible for Beats By Dr Dre’s first three years of output.
For the last five years, Petri has been living and working in LA, partnering with brands including Adidas, FIFA, and Netflix – and working as a “personal creative director” with some pretty amazing names including Billie Eilish, Will Smith, Herbie Hancock, and working on Beyonce’s ‘Lemonade.’
Sanam Petri, international ECD at Uncommon, said: “I wasn’t sure if I’d come back to advertising again, but Uncommon is one of those mythical creative playgrounds where it seems anything goes. You’re not just allowed but encouraged to make anything you want here, from feature films to products — and given world class support to do it. All that, plus a genuine desire to do some good in the world… I don’t know any other place in the world with the energy, mettle and ambition of Uncommon right now.”
Nils Leonard, co-founder at Uncommon, said: “We’re honoured to welcome Sanam to Uncommon. Her instinct, taste and empathy is a game changer for the studio. She’s worked with some of the world’s most exciting brands and people — we can’t wait to see how this collides with what we’re building here and in the US.”
