Ben Bilboul Joins Coolr as First Chairman

L-R: Ben Bilboul and Adam Clyne

​Coolr has appointed Ben Bilboul as its first chairman. Ben, founding partner and former CEO of Karmarama, will chair Coolr’s board as the agency accelerates its ambitious growth and international expansion programme, supported by investment from Growth Capital Partners (GCP) in late 2024

Ben’s appointment follows a period of rapid growth for Coolr, including 70% year-on-year revenue growth in 2024 and the expansion of its leadership team, as the agency prepares to scale in the US.

Founded in 2017 by Adam Clyne, former COO of LADbible Group and head of digital at Weber Shandwick, Coolr has grown to more than 150 full-time staff - larger than many independent advertising agencies. The agency partners with some of the world’s biggest consumer brands, providing end-to-end social media services from strategy and creative to influencer marketing and channel management

Ben co-founded Karmarama, building it into one of the UK’s largest and most awarded independent agencies. Backed by Phoenix Equity Partners, the agency grew to more than 300 people under his 20 years of leadership and was ranked the UK’s top agency in the Sunday Times Best Companies list for seven consecutive years.

After Accenture acquired Karmarama in 2017, Ben went on to lead the creative division of Accenture Song, where he oversaw the acquisition and integration of agencies across the UK and EMEA - including Droga5, Rothco, Creative Drive and Spark44 - and sat on Song’s Global Creative Council. He stepped away in 2022 to pursue a portfolio career.

Ben Bilboul, chairman at Coolr, said, “I tried to hire Adam several times at Karmarama, so I was delighted when he hired me to join Coolr. Adam is one of the most all-round talented people I know and Coolr has all the ingredients for exceptional success. As well as being excellent at what they do, Coolr has a soulful, people first culture that will help it thrive as it scales. When I look back at Karmarama, working with Private Equity to amplify what made us special was probably the most fulfilling part of the journey. My job at Coolr is to help ensure Adam and the team enjoy it as much as I did.”

Ben continued, “Social presents so many opportunities; it’s high growth, highly innovative, and increasingly, it’s where brands are being built. Every agency I know would kill for the growth trajectory that Coolr is on.”

Adam Clyne, founder and CEO at Coolr said, “Ben’s appointment comes at a pivotal time for Coolr as we prepare for the next phase of our growth, including international expansion into the US. Ben’s experience scaling creative businesses is unparalleled – and his strategic counsel will be invaluable at Coolr as we build on the momentum we’ve created. He understands both the creative and commercial sides of what we do, and his appointment strengthens our ability to scale with purpose.”