March, 2026.- In the high-stakes 2026 New York advertising scene, few names carry the blend of humility and creative firepower that Ricardo Franco does. Following a stellar run at BBH and having made his mark in markets like S\u00e3o Paulo and Madrid, Franco joins BBDO New York with a clear mandate: to raise the bar for legendary brands like Budweiser and Michelob ULTRA. His arrival comes at a peak moment for Budweiser, whose Super Bowl LX ad, \u201cAmerican Icons,\u201d recently secured the No. 1 spot on USA Today\u2019s Ad Meter. For Ricardo, success isn\u2019t a fluke but the result of a \u201cpuppy-dog level of enthusiasm\u201d\u2014as Michael Aimette describes it\u2014that allows him to find gold even in the most modest briefs. His international perspective gives him a unique edge: the ability to inject Brazilian spirit, energy, and joy into the heart of American advertising.<\/p>\n
In this exclusive interview with Roastbrief, Ricardo Franco opens up about his leadership philosophy, comparing his passion for advertising to a tennis player\u2019s devotion to the sport: it\u2019s not just about the trophies, but the joy of \u201chitting the ball\u201d every single day. Franco breaks down what BBDO\u2019s ambition to \u201cDo Big Things\u201d means operationally, ensuring that work must be, above all, fun, memorable, and business-impacting. From his insights on the resilience learned in the Brazilian market to his commitment to maintaining AB InBev\u2019s momentum, discover how this creative leader plans to shape the future of BBDO NY, proving that when passion meets opportunity, the result is inevitably iconic.<\/p>\n
1. From BBH to BBDO: You\u2019re joining BBDO New York from BBH New York, another iconic creative agency. What drew you to BBDO at this moment, and how does the creative culture and ambition here differ from what you experienced previously?<\/p>\n
First of all, how lucky am I to have had the chance to work at BBH and now at BBDO New York?<\/p>\n
I got into this business admiring the work that came out of BBDO New York: FedEx, HBO, Foot Locker, GE, Sneakers\u2026 the list goes on. It\u2019s an agency that has shaped what great advertising looks like.<\/p>\n
And I\u2019ve long admired what Michael Aimette (Chief Creative Officer), Emma Armstrong (CEO), and Todd Sussman (Chief Strategy Officer) have been building. So when the opportunity came to join them and be part of that momentum, it was impossible to say no.<\/p>\n
2. Leading the AB InBev Portfolio: You\u2019re leading creative for the agency\u2019s AB InBev business, including Budweiser and Michelob ULTRA. Budweiser\u2019s Super Bowl LX ad, \u201cAmerican Icons,\u201d just took the No. 1 spot on USA Today\u2019s Ad Meter. How do you maintain that momentum and continue to raise the bar for one of the world\u2019s most iconic beer brands?<\/p>\n
When you look at the work Budweiser and Michelob ULTRA are doing, as a creative, you think: I wish I could work on those brands.<\/p>\n
And now I get to. (Again, very lucky.)<\/p>\n
So having the chance to push the work even further and drive business results for some of the most iconic brands in the world is really exciting.<\/p>\n
3. The Brazil-to-New York Creative Lens: You\u2019ve built your career across S\u00e3o Paulo, Madrid, and New York. How has that international journey shaped your creative perspective, and what does a Brazilian creative leader bring to American advertising that might be different from a homegrown perspective?<\/p>\n
Living and working in Rio, S\u00e3o Paulo, Madrid, and New York definitely changes your perspective. Different cultures change how you see people, stories, and humor. And that naturally shows up in the work.<\/p>\n
As for being a Brazilian creative leader, I recently heard a quote from Steve Kerr (head coach of the Golden State Warriors) that captures it well:<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019d recommend all Brazilians for a locker room. There\u2019s a culture of spirit, energy, and joy in Brazil. You can just feel it.\u201d<\/p>\n
That energy, positivity, and resilience are things I try to bring into both life and work.<\/p>\n
4. Turning Small Briefs into Big Things: Michael Aimette described your \u201ccrazy, almost puppy-dog level of enthusiasm\u201d and your ability to find \u201cgreat opportunities in every brief, even the smallest ones.\u201d How do you approach a brief that might seem modest or constrained and find a way to turn it into something significant?<\/p>\n
I think part of that mindset comes from starting my career in a market like Brazil.<\/p>\n
If you sit around waiting for the \u201cbig brief,\u201d it might never arrive. So you learn to look for opportunities everywhere.<\/p>\n
More often than not, if you look at the problem differently, you can find something interesting and turn it into something much bigger than it initially seemed.<\/p>\n
5. Ranked #5 Globally: You\u2019ve been ranked the 5th most awarded Creative Director globally by Cannes Lions. What does that recognition mean to you, and how does it inform your leadership philosophy? Do you actively pursue award-worthy work, or do you see awards as a by-product of doing the work right?<\/p>\n
Despite being more of a Roger Federer fan, there\u2019s a quote from Novak Djokovic that I love: \u201cI can keep playing at this level because I like hitting the tennis ball.\u201d<\/p>\n
That\u2019s how I think about the work. I\u2019m always excited about the next brief. It\u2019s a fresh opportunity to make something great.<\/p>\n
And don\u2019t get me wrong: Winning awards is great, and I hope to win more. But what I really love is hitting the ball.<\/p>\n
6. \u201cDo Big Things\u201d: You mentioned that BBDO\u2019s ambition to \u201cDo Big Things\u201d drew you to this role. What does \u201cDoing Big Things\u201d mean to you creatively, and what can we expect to see from BBDO New York under your leadership in the coming year?<\/p>\n
As a creative, how can you not get pumped about working at a place that wants to Do Big Things?<\/p>\n
It\u2019s about creating work that\u2019s fun, memorable, culturally impactful, and that drives real business results.<\/p>\n
I couldn\u2019t be more excited about what\u2019s ahead, and I truly believe we\u2019re going to Do Big Things here.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"March, 2026.- In the high-stakes 2026 New York advertising scene, few names carry the blend of humility and…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":180709,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[72914,72915,10865,9,11,10,49,51,50,72916],"class_list":{"0":"post-180708","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-new-york","8":"tag-bbdo","9":"tag-hitting-the-ball","10":"tag-interview","11":"tag-new-york","12":"tag-new-york-headlines","13":"tag-new-york-news","14":"tag-new-york-state","15":"tag-new-york-state-headlines","16":"tag-new-york-state-news","17":"tag-roastbrief-interview"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/180708","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=180708"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/180708\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/180709"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=180708"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=180708"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=180708"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}