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What happens at Cannes shouldn’t stay in Cannes. It should go straight into the Q3 deck.
That’s Publicis Groupe chief executive (CEO) Arthur Sadoun’s mindset, as the business gears up for Cannes Lions 2025.
As clients navigate financial pressure and tariff uncertainty, and while the ad industry itself faces what Sadoun described as an “unrelenting news flow of restructurings and layoffs,” Publicis is setting a tone for this year’s festival that’s less about rosé and more about ROI.
As in 2024, the French holding company will forgo a splashy beach activation or Croisette café set-up in favor of closed-door sessions open to all of its clients. These forums will focus on the “upside” of using AI to boost market share and reduce costs.
“20 years ago, the purpose of attending Cannes Lions was to come back with a point of view about where creativity was going. Now this is not enough,” Sadoun told ADWEEK.
Making Cannes count
Cannes Lions delegate passes cost $5,771.73, before any other expenses like travel or accommodation. Add in award entries or any kind of branded presence (like a $108,000 brunch or a $4 million concert) and costs can quickly mount for attendees.
In a world where WARC has revised its global 2025 ad spend forecast down a percentage point to $1.15 trillion, Sadoun wants to “make sure that Cannes counts” for Publicis’ “conscious but combative” client list, which includes Coca-Cola and Pfizer.
“It can’t be about celebrating creativity for its own sake. It has to be about showing how creativity—because that’s what it’s still about—can deliver innovative business solutions to solve clients’ problems in an economic downturn.”
Publicis will spend the festival workshopping with chief marketing officers (CMOs) and other senior client executives its suite of AI tools. It’s been investing more in this space, including pledging €300 million over three years to develop its Core AI tool, a connective AI layer threaded across its tech stack.
The network received positive feedback from the sessions it hosted last year, said Sadoun, which were focused on removing the “BS” from AI. It ran 40 sessions with 70 clients and developed over 50 bespoke Core AI models for brands after the festival.
This year, meetings will be organized by vertical, including CPG, health, and automotive, or tailored to individual clients.
Measuring its own ROI
So, how will Publicis measure its own ROI from Cannes Lions 2025?
“We measure success based on the value we bring to our clients. [We want] clients to leave with the impression that they’ve learned something, and they’re able to take action on it and answer their business problems,” he said.
“It doesn’t change anything about the pleasure of being there and celebrating creativity,” the CEO added, “but celebrating creativity for its own sake is not enough in a moment like this one.”
Adjacent activations at Cannes Lions are becoming increasingly expensive and extravagant as tech giants, vendors, agencies, and more vie for senior attendance and social buzz.
Months before the 2025 festival, holding group Stagwell has announced plans to bring athletes, including Erin Andrews and Sir Mo Farah, to its Sport Beach activation. On the official event side, Cannes Lions Creator program is returning for the second year, featuring speakers like Kai Cenat and Amelia Dimoldenberg.
CORRECTION: This article has been updated to reflect that Publicis plans to invest €300 million euros into its Core AI tool over three years, not $20 million as previously stated.
