From Entrepreneur to Global MD: Alex Uprichard on Culture, Creative Bravery, and Driving ROI at IMA

Alex Uprichard describes herself as a “hustler by nature.” It’s a fitting description for the Managing Director of IMA, one of the UK’s fastest-growing global agencies. Leading a team of over 300 across seven international hubs, Alex blends cultural insight with commercial strategy—a skill set honed during her time at Viacom working on power brands like MTV, and later as the co-founder of the digital community Mums in the Know.

In an in-depth interview with LBB’s Alex Reeves, Alex opened up about her career arc, the realities of modern retail marketing, and what it takes to build a "power brand" in 2026.

Here are the key takeaways from her conversation on how IMA is rewriting the agency playbook.

1. The Entrepreneurial Edge: Treating a Global Agency Like a Startup

Transitioning from founding and selling her own digital business to leading a massive global agency might seem like a leap, but Alex views it as a natural evolution. That entrepreneurial chapter fundamentally shaped her approach to agency growth.

"When you’ve had a business and literally had to do everything from manage the P&L to create the growth strategy... you're prepared to do whatever it takes," Alex told LBB. "Just because you go into something with a larger scale, that doesn't mean you lose that passion for innovation."

This startup mentality breeds deep empathy for IMA's clients. Having been in their shoes—balancing books and juggling stakeholders—Alex has championed a consultative partnership model that shakes up traditional, rigid agency approaches.

Turning IMA into a "Power Brand"

Reflecting on her time at Viacom with brands like MTV and Nickelodeon, Alex noted that building cultural connection makes everything else fall into place. As part of IMA’s recent positioning, the focus has shifted to being louder about the agency's unique sweet spot: connecting with culture and driving it straight through to physical purchase.

2. Breaking the White Noise: "Creating Connections People Buy"

IMA’s core proposition is simple yet profound: creating connections people buy. But in a hyper-fragmented media landscape, many brands still get this wrong. According to Alex, the biggest pitfall is failing to think consumer-first and forgetting to look at the holistic journey.

The Smashed Funnel: Marketing and sales functions are too often siloed. A brilliant story in an advertising environment falls flat if the retail presence is poor.

The Smollan Advantage: Through global owners Smollan, IMA pairs deep creative agency expertise with massive physical retail heritage, ensuring consistency from the first digital touchpoint to the final retail shelf.

3. Creative Bravery in Action: Leaning into the Jet2 Meme

A prime example of modern brand agility is IMA’s long-standing partnership with Jet2. While the brand’s iconic "Hold My Hand" audio asset boasts a massive 50% recognition rate from just 2.5 seconds of audio, it recently went viral on TikTok as the backing track for "holiday disasters."

Instead of fighting the internet, the team leaned in.

IMA worked closely with Jet2’s social media team to launch the Rylan ‘Head of Holidays’ campaign, cleverly hijacking the meme to remind audiences why nothing beats a Jet2 holiday.

4. Bridging Physical Craft and Digital Play: The adidas SL72 Campaign

For the re-release of the adidas SL72, IMA demonstrated exactly what modern "retail theatre" looks like. Rather than treating digital as a bolt-on gimmick, IMA’s in-house Hybrid Experience team built a custom-made physical arcade machine featuring a nostalgic, AI-generated pixel art game.

[ Physical Retro Space ] ── (Custom Arcade Machine) ──> [ Pixel Art Game featuring Real Store Staff ]

The activation didn't just look cool; it was deeply rooted in the physical environment:

Hyper-Localized: The game included London-inspired Easter eggs and nods to adidas heritage.

Human-Centric: Pixel sprites were modeled after the actual real-life store staff.

Commercial Impact: By seamlessly blending physical design with digital storytelling, the campaign drove higher dwell times and directly boosted sales ROI.

5. Leadership for the Next Era: Agility, Resilience, and Overcoming Fear

With IMA continuing its global expansion—including the recent opening of IMA Benelux—Alex looks for specific non-negotiable traits in her senior leadership team.

Resilience & Adaptability: "There's no way that we can operate across so many territories with so much expertise without having real nimble thinkers in the business," she notes.

Mindful Reflection: As a self-proclaimed high-energy hustler, Alex admits she is learning the importance of pausing to reflect on achievements rather than just racing to the next milestone.

When asked about the best piece of advice she’s ever received, Alex pointed to a classic mantra that guides her daily decision-making: "Feel the fear and do it anyway."

"I am one of the world's overthinkers and I know that can lead to paralysis by analysis. [This advice] has helped me to be decisive and inspire calm and confidence in those around me, which I think is a really important asset in leadership."

To read the full, unabridged interview exploring high street trends, leadership dynamics, and Alex’s personal challenges (including her upcoming Hyrox race), check out the original feature on Little Black Book.