• by Richard Whitman , Columnist, May 29, 2019

This is getting to be a little sad. 

Poor Martin Sorrell just can’t seem to get over the fact he was booted (essentially) from the firm he transformed from a shopping cart maker into an advertising giant over the course of 30 years.

A couple of days ago, for the umpteenth time since he got the boot in April 2018, he told a reporter what terrible shape WPP was in and how distressing it is for him, still being a large WPP shareholder. 

Of course, what Sir Martin always fails to mention is the current regime, led by CEO Mark Read, is trying to dig itself out of a big honkin’ hole the company was driven into during the last two or three years of Sorrell’s tenure. 

“As a shareholder, its worrying,” Sorrell told the UK’s Financial News. “The people running WPP see their jobs as a burden now,” he added.

I’m pretty sure they saw their jobs as more of a burden when you were running the show, Martin. 

You had a great run at WPP, Martin, although you probably stayed a few years longer than you should have. Time to let go and focus your full energies on something different. 

Hey, what about S4 Capital? You know, that company you created about a year ago, designed as a new age marketing holding company. I’m sure it can use all the strategic firepower you can give it.

Build that peanut, as you once called it, into a whole can of premium mixed nuts. Or something.