‘A conscious decision’: Agencies still choose to go to Cannes amid economic uncertainty

“I’ll be honest, this has been a tougher year in terms of getting decisions out of people for new business and for new scopes,” said David Reid, vp of global growth at Transmission, a global B2B marketing agency, “but we can’t stay quiet and can’t afford to go dark because buyers are in-market.”

Between travel expenses, lodging and festival tickets themselves, which can reach up to more than $7,000 for marketers, attendees are looking at steep costs to attend.

In years past, it wasn’t unusual to see ad tech companies like iHeartMedia, Nielsen and VaynerMedia, host clients aboard luxury yachts docked in the Port de Cannes, otherwise known as Yacht Row. VaynerMedia has historically been a regular in the port, but is opting for land-based programming this year at Chez Vayner Café, centrally located on the Palais.

Yacht charter costs can range anywhere from $109,000–$163,500 for the week, in addition to taxes and other fees, according to Bespoke Yacht Charter’s website. Bespoke is a London and French Riviera based boutique brokerage. VaynerMedia’s chief client officer Nick Miaritis said the pivot was driven more by practicality than price, noting ongoing construction around the port, but he did not share what the cost of the new space looked like this year.

This year, VaynerX, which is parent company to VaynerMedia, is sending an estimated 30 delegates, including reps from its various agencies like VaynerMedia and Gallery Media Group. For Miaritis, who has attended the festival with VaynerMedia for the last seven years, the value lies in the relationships — not the parties. To him, it makes the steep price tag despite the economic uncertainty worth it.

“So much of the business that we’ve grown now to be a pretty sizable global holding company has been on the backs of meetings that we’ve had at Cannes,” he said.

A spokesperson for the festival confirmed that 13,000 attendees went to Cannes Lions last year, but declined to say how many registered for this year’s.

Long-term ROI

Others who are planning on going to Cannes this year justify their place there by noting it as a place to be seen and heard — even despite tighter marketing budgets and a cooling economy.

“You have to be part of this conversation if you’re going to grow. There are just some things that you have to invest in,” said Emily Twomey, chief marketing officer at Razorfish Corporate. The agency is sending an estimated eight to 10 delegates this year, depending on client needs. The cohort is similar to last year’s attendance, per Twomey.

To curb costs, some agency execs say they booked travel earlier back in December and January, avoiding events that require a delegate ticket and sending skeleton teams. 

For example, first-time attendee Christine Olivas, CEO of No Single Individual, agency partner offering freelance services, is mostly attending events outside of the Palais and bunking up with other attendees. 

Global travel headaches 

Adding to the economic woes are geopolitical tensions as cross-border travel restrictions are having an impact on this year’s Cannes travel plans. Some advertisers are avoiding international travel altogether over re-entry fears to the U.S. and President Donald Trump’s crackdown on visas and immigration.  

“We’ve already seen clients who are not U.S. citizens struggle to come in and out of the U.S. as easily as they did maybe five or six months ago,” said Doug Landers, co-founder of Greenlight Group digital talent agency, in an emailed statement. “We have Canadian clients who are experiencing this in particular.” (Landers did not provide the names of specific clients impacted by travel crackdowns.) 

Despite the headwinds and travel concerns, Cannes this year is a bet marketers are willing to take, convinced there will be more wheeling and dealing than hobnobbing and cocktail diplomacy that will ultimately drum up revenue.

“It’s always a hard balance and I’d be lying to say that it’s not a very conscious decision,” Reid said.