Nick Hussey, the new managing director of digital agency Embryo, has built a career on spotting opportunities.
From the golden age of television commercials to the emergence of performance marketing, Hussey has been through several industry transformations.
Now, as he takes the reins at the Manchester-based agency, he is determined to use all his experience to reshape its future and exploit the opportunity he sees for explosive growth – and a return of its swagger.
“I want this to be my final role before I retire,” he tells me at Embryo’s Portland Street office. “I’m still hugely ambitious and I love a challenge.”
“The best apprenticeship you could have wished for”
Hussey’s advertising career began in an unconventional fashion.
Raised in Surrey, he took a job working for a special effects and model-making company after opting to delay the start of an English degree at Leeds University.
Before long he was gaining hands-on experience in the glamorous worlds of film, TV and commercials.
“I was blowing things up, flying people on wires and building animatronics,” he said. “It was the best apprenticeship you could have wished for at 18 years old.”
Perhaps unsurprisingly, the return to full-time education did not go well; indeed, his degree lasted precisely two weeks.
He headed back to London with the ambition of becoming a TV commercials director but his head was turned towards agencies by a globe-trotting friend who worked for ad giant Leo Burnett.
“He was going around the world doing shoots and working in this amazing office,” he said.
“I remember saying ‘What do you do?’ He explained it to me, and I decided to join a tiny agency in Chiswick that had the Bonhams Auction House account.”
So began Hussey’s career in advertising – and he rose through the ranks quickly.
Moving north
By 26, he was a board director at Leagas Shafron Davis, then a top-five London agency. “I really cut my teeth there,” he said. “I learned on the job.”
Before long he was headhunted by Lowe Howard-Spink, where he worked on the likes of Reebok, Malibu and Diesel, before an eight-year spell at Mother.
“It had started on the back of winning the Channel 5 account, and they offered me six-month maternity cover,” he said.
“Something about it really spoke to me. They had no account handlers, just strategists, Mothers and creatives, that was all. I took a six-month punt, and I stayed for eight years.
“That was another agency that shaped me, because that really was strategy above creativity – if you can set a good strategy, you get brilliant creative.”
After stints at JWT and then Havas, the next big moment arrived in 2010 when McCann Manchester called and asked if he would like to come and run their creative department.
This time, lured by a “London salary” and the charms of McCann’s bucolic Cheshire base at Bonis Hall, he jumped at the chance.
The timing was spot on – and Hussey was very fortunate as McCann was progressing with the Aldi account and moving to television ads, which was his forte.
His seven years at McCann also brought him the “corporate professionalism that had been missing” – and began a love affair with Manchester that remains to this day.
“I’ve been here 14 years now and I’ve never wanted to go back,” he said, “because there’s a city here that is on par with and in some ways better than London.”
Further senior agency roles followed at Forever Beta, Jaywing, The Conscious Agency and Rise at Seven, where he was group managing director, before six months as chief revenue officer at tech start-up Journey36.
The ultimate move to Embryo
Fortuitously for Hussey, Embryo was in the market for someone who could lead them to the next level.
After meeting with CEO Ross Green and Chief Innovation Officer James Welch, he quickly determined that this was the opportunity he had been seeking.
“Embryo had all the right ingredients – talented people, a solid client base and a good reputation. We just need to define our unique value proposition,” he explained.
Within weeks of joining, Hussey and his team began restructuring the agency’s offering.
The goal was to transition Embryo – which had originally been founded by Green in 2015 – from a service-based agency competing on execution to a strategic partner delivering long-term value.
Hussey saw that the agency’s growth needed to be driven not just by tactical execution, but by leveraging data-driven insights, proprietary technology and a value-led approach to client relationships.
“Rather than just selling services, we want to empower businesses with knowledge and showcase the value we can bring.”
Hussey believes that fostering a culture of education will help Embryo build stronger, long-term relationships with clients who see the agency as a true partner rather than a transactional service provider.
Hussey has set ambitious targets for Embryo. Last year the agency hit a turnover of £ 5.6 million with an EBITDA of 11.3%, and this year he wants to reach £7.5m – by focusing more on monetising Embryo’s proprietary tools.
“We need to move beyond being just another digital agency,” he said. “By focusing on innovation and strategy, we can differentiate ourselves from competitors and provide real value to clients.”
Additionally, Hussey has been instrumental in reshaping the agency’s operational structure. A new finance director and operations director have been brought in to streamline efficiencies, and every department within the agency is now aligned with the overall business objectives.
Looking to the future, Hussey sees Embryo evolving into a group structure. CEO Green has been focusing more on potential mergers and acquisitions to build a portfolio of complementary businesses.
“This will allow us to expand our offering while maintaining agility,” he said. “The idea is to build an ecosystem where innovation and strategic thinking are at the heart of everything we do.”
With a clear vision, a revitalised strategy and four decades of experience to draw upon, Nick Hussey is ready to lead Embryo into its most exciting chapter yet. All being well, a fitting end to a proud career in agencyland.
