Chris Whitelaw

Chris Whitelaw is a rather curious presence in the world of digital marketing. Formerly a successful banker with roles in Australia, New York and London, his drive to be his own boss has lead him into a business where the rules are still being written and even the biggest players are less than a decade old.  Whitelaw takes an almost evangelical approach to his decision to leave the world of finance, saying it was hard to stay on the sidelines when the way we live and do business was being transformed.

“From an emotional standpoint what’s going on with digital is as disruptive to our way of life as the industrial revolution. I did not want to be on the sidelines watching what happened,” he says. “Banking has changed but it’s still the same principles that have held true for 1,000-odd years.”

He also had the desire to build something of his own having previously worked for some of the biggest companies in the world including Credit Suisse First Boston and Deutsche Bank.

 “I wanted to start my own business and looked at a lot of different opportunities. Digital marketing really screamed out for me, it was a relatively new industry and fitted with my statistical, financial, numerical background,” he says.  Whitelaw was once Australia’s youngest stockbroker and worked on multi-billion pound deals during his time in finance but almost five years in with the company now employing over 40 staff, he says he’s pleased with I Spy’s progress.  “The calibre of the team we’ve been able to attract is beyond expectations as are the types of clients and the work we are doing for them,” he says.

As if launching his own business wasn’t enough, then Whitelaw has a number of other challenges. He’s training for his private pilot’s licence although finding the time to complete the course is proving challenging. He’s also a keen trekker, having headed off to Everest and Kilimanjaro to experience extreme physical altitude,  an interesting contrast to the moderate climes of Covent Garden.