source AdAge
Cheil has appointed Cedric Devitt as its first chief creative officer for North America.
Devitt joins the agency after more than a decade at SPCSHP, where he served as chief creative officer and partner. He will oversee Cheil’s creative strategy across the U.S. and Canada, with a mandate to strengthen the agency’s creative capabilities and expand its portfolio of brand partnerships. He will report to Euisun Chung, group CEO and president of Cheil North and South America.
Devitt will lead creative efforts on Samsung, one of Cheil’s flagship clients and one of the world’s largest advertisers, while also driving innovation across the agency’s North American operations. He said he aims to transform Cheil from a traditional agency into a more agile and dynamic creative organization, broadening its scope beyond conventional advertising work.
A rep for SPCSHP (formerly Big Spaceship) said Steve Street, has been promoted to senior VP, executive creative director, and is running the agency’s creative department following Devitt’s exit.
“The way we are interacting with mobile technology today is absolutely fascinating,” he said. “On the one hand, we are tethered to these devices for productivity and what we believe to be true connection. At the same time, we have negative experiences with them around attention and what that means generationally. To be able to shape the marketing and messaging around that stuff is really interesting. It needs strong creative leadership and vision.”
Devitt said he is also drawn to the agency’s work in AI and its trove of consumer data, which can be employed in interesting ways for different kinds of clients.
Devitt, who started at Cheil last week, will be based in New York. The agency, with global headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, has a large office in Dallas and an outpost in Toronto. Cheil’s North American operations also include sister agencies McKinney, Iris and Barbarian. Under Devitt’s leadership, the agency plans to strengthen cross-agency collaboration so clients can tap into the right expertise from across the network.
Cheil Worldwide is the world’s 11th largest agency company, according to Ad Age Datacenter. Samsung owned 25.2% of Cheil Worldwide as of December 2024, according to Samsung’s financial filings.
Chung said Cheil is at a critical moment in its evolution, eager to position itself as a full-service partner for clients well beyond Samsung through integrated campaigns and innovative partnerships.
“By embracing emerging technologies, including AI, we aim to create work that is impactful and emotionally resonant,” Chung said. “Together with Cedric, we’re excited to embark on this new chapter and make a significant impact in the industry, focusing on distinct and impactful consumer touchpoints that go beyond the traditional scope of creative work.”
Before joining Cheil, Devitt helped transform SPCSHP into a full-service agency, securing long-term relationships with clients such as Starbucks, for which he developed acclaimed seasonal and ASMR-driven campaigns. His portfolio also includes notable work for Chase Freedom, Pepsi and the NFL. Earlier in his career, Devitt held creative leadership roles at MRY, LBi, TribalDDB and Grey.
Outside the agency world, he co-founded the U.S. Air Guitar Championships and produced the award-winning documentary “Air Guitar Nation.”
