WPP plc is a British multinational communications, advertising, public relations, technology, and commerce holding company headquartered in London, England.

[6] On 14 April 2018, Martin Sorrell retired 33 years after founding the company, following allegations of bullying and sexual indescretions,[7][8] and Roberto Quarta was appointed chairman.

On 25 November 2004 WPP closed the Burntwood factory, and stopped manufacturing Picquotware; all assets were sold on 14 December 2004.

[16] In the same year (1987), the company acquired J. Walter Thompson (including JWT, Hill & Knowlton, and MRB Group) for $566m.

[12] In May 2000, WPP agreed to acquire the United States–based Young & Rubicam Group for $5.7 billion, in what was at the time the largest ever takeover in the advertising sector.

[18] The takeover made WPP the largest advertising company in the world measured by billings and revenue, overtaking Omnicom Group and Interpublic.

[20][21] During 2009 WPP reduced its workforce by around 14,000 employees, or 12.3% of its then total staff numbers, in response to the onset of the 2008–2012 global recession.

[26] In November 2016, WPP announced it will be acquiring PEP, LLC, a project management and procurement company that oversees shopper marketing promotions for clients, in the US.

[27] Many of WPP's constituent agencies use Microsoft Windows, and the organisation was among those hit by the 2017 cyberattacks on Ukraine, with some staff's computer access limited to webmail only as much as ten days later.

[30] In April 2018, Martin Sorrell retired after 33 years, following allegations of personal misconduct and misuse of company assets.

[42] By selling a majority stake of Kantar to Bain Capital, WPP is believed to have generated $3.1 billion to help pay down debt.

[43] Read also sold the original Wire and Plastic Products company that Sorrell had purchased to create his business empire.

[47] In July 2024, WPP announced the appointment of former BT Group chief Philip Jansen as its chairman succeeding Roberto Quarta.

[32] WPP's notable advertising agency company holdings include Grey, Ogilvy,[15] VMLY&R, and Wunderman Thompson.

[15] WPP's media investment management company holdings include GroupM, Mindshare, Wavemaker and Essence.

In October of that year blogger Tom Coates wrote an emotional post to his own blog about his long-estranged father.

[73] Lawsuits have alleged that four of WPP's advertisement campaigns for fossil fuel companies have been misleading or entailed greenwashing.