To make matters worse, agencies are finding themselves squeezed, with lower fee income coming at a time when they need to invest in new technologies and recruit a wider range of people to meet changing client expectations. It would be a mistake to say that retail no longer has a place in the large general-practice firms, but at an undoubtedly difficult time agents are having to adapt fast, and some are faring better than others.

So what exactly are the challenges? And how are agencies responding to them?