Meet the 2025 Media Minds: UM
As the quarter-final stage of the 2025 Media Mind tournament approaches, The Media Leader is shining a spotlight on some of the brightest quiz contenders.
These are industry experts whose sharp knowledge has propelled their agencies to the knockout rounds.
In part eight of this series, meet Molly Brown, AV director at UM. Brown has had an instrumental role in her team reaching this stage. But what floats her boat?
UM will compete against Havas on 8 October.
Molly Brown, AV director, UM
How did you get into the advertising industry?
I started as an apprentice at UM where I still am today almost 10 years ago!
What is your favourite medium and why?
Has to be audio – I love the radio, music streaming and podcasts and believe the most powerful place for a brand to be is in your ear!
Favourite media brand?
Spotify all the way.
What’s is your favourite ad campaign?
At the moment I’m a big fan of the Dominos ad. I know a lot of people hate it but I think it’s catchy and I don’t think annoying people is always a bad thing with TV adverts!
Biggest change in the media industry over the next five years?
Coming at this from an AV-lens I think we’ll continue to see the growth of ad-supported models. Platforms will see ads outpace subscriptions in profitability, because subscriber growth is flattening while ad markets are scaling. I think this is important because subscription alone cannot fund the creation of good content anymore as production gets more expensive and riskier.
You want to impress a new client – which restaurant do you take them to?
Got to be Ivy Asia.
What is your favourite fashion brand and why?
Vinted – I’m currently obsessed.
What is your favourite film and why?
Pretty woman – sucker for a good romance
What are you listening to, watching or reading at the moment?
Audery Hobert’s new album – Who’s That Clown.
Favourite local café or bar?
The Fence beer garden has been a winner this summer!
Finally what has been your personal highlight of Media Mind to date?
Studying the Radiocentre website and not getting a single question right in the radio section – surprisingly did better on all the non-radio related topics!
Want to see who else has made it this far? Check out the full line-up here
And if you think your team has what it takes, make sure you secure one of the limited places for Media Mind 2026 by contacting [email protected]