Multicultural marketing agency
UWG
Multicultural agency founded in 1969, Ad Age's 2026 Multicultural Agency of the Year.
UWG, formerly UniWorld Group, is a multicultural marketing agency founded in 1969 by Byron Lewis and headquartered in Brooklyn, New York; Monique Nelson, its chair and CEO, became its majority owner in 2012. It works within the WPP family as a Black-owned company in which WPP holds a 49% minority stake, MediaVillage reports. It was named Ad Age's 2026 Multicultural Agency of the Year, its first time winning the title.
Standing in the Report's landscape
No. 3 in North America agencies, 2026
5 points: Ad Age's 2026 Multicultural Agency of the Year; tied with Acadia and placed after it alphabetically.
See the list and how it was made
The rankings behind it
A place in a list is read from published rankings and award tables by a points rule set out with the list; nobody pays to be on it. Size and fame are not fit: check what this agency does against your brief.
Where it shines
- Ad Age's 2026 Multicultural Agency of the Year.
- More than five decades of multicultural marketing since its founding in 1969.
Check before signing
- WPP holds a 49% minority stake: ask whether WPP agencies are involved in your account and how conflicts are handled.
- A specialist agency: ask how it works alongside your general-market agencies.
What it offers
- Markets
- United States
How it is classified
- Category
- Full-serviceCreative
Something is listed only when it can be checked. A connection we could not confirm is left off, and Find your stack then credits a public API at half weight.
Our six checks
- Ownership is public: not known yet
- Services are published: not known yet
- Offices are listed: not known yet
- Privacy is published: not known yet
- Effectiveness is evidenced: not known yet
- Work is shown: not known yet
- Ownership is publicNot assessed
It names its owner (the holding group) or states that it is independent, and names its leadership.
A MediaVillage interview with its chair and CEO, Monique Nelson, describes UWG as Black-owned with WPP holding 49%; the agency's own site was not seen.
- Services are publishedNot assessed
A services or capabilities page says what it does.
Its services page was not checked for this listing.
- Offices are listedNot assessed
It publishes where it operates: its offices or markets.
Its own office list was not checked; the cited sources name only some offices.
- Privacy is publishedNot assessed
Its site has a privacy notice, and a code of conduct where one was seen.
Its privacy notice was not checked for this listing.
- Effectiveness is evidencedNot assessed
An independent effectiveness ranking or award from 2023 to 2026 names it (the Effie Index, the IPA Effectiveness Awards, the WARC Effective 100).
No effectiveness ranking or award for 2023–2026 was found in the sources read for this listing.
- Work is shownNot assessed
It publishes case studies or named client work.
Its own case-study pages were not checked for this listing.
Not assessed is not a failure — it means we have not checked yet. Methodology
Evidence
Sources
- UWG: A-List 2026To re-check
- UWG INC. named 2026 Ad Age Multicultural Agency of the YearTo re-check
- UWG's Monique Nelson: "We're going to have to work differently to succeed"To re-check
- Massive makeover at UniWorld: changes reposition ad agency for digital ageTo re-check
- Monsoon and UniWorld launch a new multicultural agency for WPPTo re-check
Every attribute
The same attributes, measured by the same rules, for every listing. "Not recorded" means we have not checked yet — never a "no". Spot something missing or wrong? Suggest an edit.
Identity
| Type | Agency | |
|---|---|---|
| Categories | Full-service, Creative | |
| Founded | 1969 | |
| Headquarters | United States | |
| Ownership | Privately held | |
| Added by | IMC Report team |
Fit
| Objectives | Not recorded | |
|---|---|---|
| Disciplines | Not recorded | |
| Number of disciplines | Not recorded | |
| Suits | None | |
| Company sizes | Not recorded | |
| Industries | Not recorded | |
| Markets | United States | |
| Reach | 45/100 | |
| Support languages | Not recorded |
Trust
The community
| "Looks right" confirmations | 0 | |
|---|---|---|
| Community experiences | 0 |
Experiences and ratings
Share your experienceNo experiences with UWG yet. Used it? Yours could be the first.
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Alternatives