Gary Pope

Gary began his career as a school teacher and led an English Department before becoming a learning designer for a change management consultancy. A strange internal comms project for Disney led Gary back to children and to launch Kids Industries.

KI solves problems, develops strategies, ideas and products as well as creating content for clients that include Disney, Nord Anglia Education, Pokémon and the BBC. As the only cross-discipline agency that specialises in the family market on the planet, KI uses deep audience insight and 20 years of experience to make children happy, parents satisfied and brands stronger.

Gary has led the design of the multi award winning subscription product for WWF, built Peppa Pig’s digital presence globally and led the creation and operationalization of two entire x-platform TV children’s channels for Al Jazeera. Gary developed the first HFSS compliant cereal for Kellogg and the Aquafresh range of children’s toothpastes. Most recently Gary has led the KI team in the redevelopment of the family offer for Royal Caribbean Cruises - from the proposition to the activities the families enjoy, through to the design of the spaces they use.

Gary’s commitment to a sustainable future for families is demonstrated through his position as Children’s Ambassador for the Products of Change Group where he advocates for children. Gary is a member of the advisory committee for The Children’s Media Conference, a guest lecturer at multiple academic institutions including Oxford and Bauhaus universities, a regular keynote speaker at conferences around the world and a regular industry writer and commentator in mainstream titles Gary is the recipient of multiple awards for marketing, content creation and strategy including a BAFTA, two IPA Strategy Awards and a Webby.

Gary is dad to Daisy and Laurence (and Lucky) and collects Star Wars UCS LEGO. Gary maintains his interest in education as a school governor.