Gary Westgate has been fired as ACLC’s creative director just three months after rejoining the Toronto agency.
Westgate previously worked with the Toronto agency in 2005, though that stint too lasted only three months, ending when Westgate accepted an offer to join the Doug Agency. From there he joined Downtown Partners, which closed in February.
Westgate was hired as creative director at ACLC following the departure of Tony Miller, now creative director at SmithRoberts Creative Communication.
“This is a tremendous, positive step for us,” Esme Carroll, the agency’s CEO said at the time. “We’ve always liked Gary a lot.”
However, Carroll notified ACLC staff of Westgate’s departure on Friday in an internal e-mail.
“I am sorry to have to advise you that Gary Westgate has been let go from ACLC effective immediately,” Carroll wrote. “This is not a decision that was taken lightly and it’s most unfortunate.”
Reached for comment this morning Carroll declined to provide any details about the reason for the split.
According to the e-mail, Chris Davies, associate creative director, and Steve Conover, senior vice-president, will fill the vacant role on an interim basis.
ACLC is also currently without a president. Ian Gordon left in March to become senior-vice president, grocery lead at Loblaw Companies. Westgate told Marketing in February that the biggest factor in his decision to rejoin ACLC was the chance to work with Gordon, whom he worked with on a couple of occasions in the past. Westgate could not be reached for comment today.
