The A-List: 2008

Job

Chief strategy officer

Company

BLM

Work Telephone

+44 (0)20 7437 1317.

Address

Eagle House, 50 Marshall Street, London, W1F 9BQ

Fantasy business partner

Niccolo Machiavelli as the new business director.

How do you off-set your carbon footprint?

Bicycling to work (mainly fairweather).

Greatest influence

Probably my family.

Clubs

MCC, Third Space, High Road House.

Favourite gadget

A guitar that my wife bought me.

Desert island objects

An old guitar, a sun lounger and a panama hat.

Most-admired politician

Clement Attlee, for creating the blueprint of the welfare state.

Favourite media

The Guardian, The Week, Curb Your Enthusiasm, Radio Five Live, bbc.co.uk.

Biggest risk taken

Starting an agency without any clients.

Perfect day

Either skiing or sitting outside a restaurant in Provence.

Who should play you in the film of your life?

Robert Downey Jr.

Career highlights

Started at Saatchis in 1981. Launched BLM in 1991, and helped build it into a £150 million agency.

Fictional hero

Sir Harry Flashman.

Hidden talent

I can make a mean risotto.

Best job outside advertising

An orange squeezer at Harrods juice bar.

Lowdown

The founding team is still together at BLM, and Makin is the planning brains that makes it tick. His closeness to clients such as Domino's Pizza is one of the reasons for the success of his agency.

Most expensive purchase

A house in France.

Why are you good at what you do?

Inquisitive, determined and occasionally insightful.