Godric Smith and Greg Nugent unite for 'discreet agency' launch

Former director of government comms for London 2012 Godric Smith is to team up with former director of brand, marketing and culture for London 2012 Greg Nugent for the as-yet unnamed venture.

PRWeek understands the agency will launch in the spring now that Smith has left his most recent interim role as executive director of government comms.

Smith, who was also head of comms for the Olympic Delivery Authority, said: ‘Greg and I will be starting a discreet consultancy offering strategic comms and marketing advice in the spring.

‘We worked closely together over a number of projects on London 2012 and are very positive about the opportunities in 2013 and beyond.’

The pair have significant corporate and public sector experience between them, with Smith’s including a stint as Tony Blair’s official spokesman when he was prime minister.

Meanwhile, Nugent’s CV includes five years as marketing director at Eurostar.

The news comes as many of the senior figures who promoted the Games find new jobs, with LOCOG’s head of PR and media Joanna Manning-Cooper heading to England Rugby 2015 this month.

Jackie Brock-Doyle, who was recently awarded an OBE for her role as director of comms and public affairs at London 2012, is understood to still be weighing up her options.

Brock-Doyle said of the pair: ‘They have both contributed massively to the Games in their fields.

‘Godric has a good strategic brain while Greg is a highly competent and creative marketer – they have very different but very complementary skills.’

Duo’s Games roles

As director of government comms for London 2012, Smith had responsibility for co-ordinating comms around the Games, including the GREAT campaign. He led a team of 100 in the Olympic Comms Directorate.

Nugent’s role took in volunteer programmes, the Olympic Torch Relay and the London 2012 Festival. He also worked with London 2012 ad agency, McCann, on the idea of ‘Games Makers’.

This article was first published on prweek.com