The future is black
Behind the demise of The Jupiter Drawing Room (JHB)
In a frank and reflective interview with the Financial Mail, founder Graham Warsop opened up on mistakes made and lessons learnt
As the ad industry dissects why The Jupiter Drawing Room (Johannesburg) has closed its doors after almost 30 years in business, founder Graham Warsop has moved swiftly to plug the gap. He’s been instrumental in the formation of Black Powder, a 100% black-owned agency that has taken over some of Jupiter’s clients and has benefited from a substantial cash investment. The new Black Powder agency is led by shareholders Gugu Madlala (CEO) and Sizwe Kumalo (executive director). Both had senior management roles at The Jupiter Drawing Room. Warsop says: "When our black shareholding partners divested equity and some of our senior black executives exited the Jupiter (Johannesburg) agency, we were left under-represented from an empowerment perspective at a senior level. Added to that, the lacklustre performance of our Johannesburg agency in recent years had compromised the efficacy of our black staff trust. "As we saw it, we were at a crossroads. We decided to take the path that led to us back...
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.
Subscribe now to unlock this article.
Support BusinessLIVE’s award-winning journalism for R129 per month (digital access only).
There’s never been a more important time to support independent journalism in SA. Our subscription packages now offer an ad-free experience for readers.
Cancel anytime.
Questions? Email helpdesk@businesslive.co.za or call 0860 52 52 00. Got a subscription voucher? Redeem it now.