Mary Wells Lawrence

Who She Is

Mary Wells Lawrence was an American advertising executive who, in 1966, became the first woman to found, own, and run a major American advertising agency, Wells Rich Greene, at a time when the industry was almost entirely male-led. Born in 1928 in Ohio, she studied at the Neighborhood Playhouse School of the Theatre in New York before pivoting to advertising, where her instinct for storytelling and her bold creative vision quickly set her apart. She became famous for campaigns that were unconventional, emotionally charged, and impossible to ignore, including the "I Love New York" concept and her work transforming Braniff International Airways into one of the most visually distinctive brands in the country. At her peak, she was the highest-paid advertising executive in the United States, a distinction that was remarkable in any industry and almost unheard of for a woman in the 1960s. She retired in 1990 and was inducted into the Advertising Hall of Fame, leaving behind a body of work that had expanded what advertising could be.

Why She Matters

Mary Wells Lawrence did not just build great campaigns, she built the firm that built them, which meant she was responsible for the creative vision, the client relationships, the business strategy, and the culture that made all of it possible. In an industry that told women they belonged in supporting roles, she created her own seat at the head of the table and then filled it with work that made her competitors take notice. Her career demonstrated that the most powerful thing a marketing leader can bring to the room is an authentic point of view, the willingness to see a brand differently than everyone else, and the confidence to act on it. Every woman working in marketing and advertising today is working in an industry that Wells Lawrence helped reshape.