From the release:

Forever, the global creative group behind FutureDeluxe, Tendril, Builders Club, Found and Trizz, today announces the appointment of Chris Bahry as Chief Executive Officer.

Bahry co-founded Tendril and built it from a boutique creative lab into one of the most recognised studios in motion and design, trusted by brands including Apple, IBM and Hublot. Tendril became a founding pillar of Forever in 2023, and Bahry most recently served as the group’s Chief Creative Officer. He takes the role as one of the few chief executives in the industry who has spent his career inside the work itself, and will lead the group alongside the existing executive team, including CFO Oliver Boughton and COO Kate Bate.

James Callahan, who has led Forever since its formation, steps back from day-to-day leadership and will continue to support the group’s growth as founder and board member.

The leadership transition has been successfully completed over the last several months and comes as Forever prepares for its next phase of growth. The move reflects the group’s belief that, as artificial intelligence transforms creative workflows and lowers barriers to production, competitive advantage will increasingly come not from scale and automation alone, but from creativity, taste and judgement. This is not a conventional CEO succession: it is a deliberate signal that the next generation of category-defining creative companies will be led by people who have built their careers around the work, and who know how to create the conditions for exceptional creativity to thrive.

“As technology makes execution increasingly accessible, creative vision, originality and taste become more valuable,” said Callahan. “In a world where almost anyone can make almost anything, taste, knowing what should be made and how to make it resonate, becomes the real differentiator. We’ve always believed creativity is our greatest advantage, and putting creative leadership at the centre of Forever is the best way to protect and strengthen that advantage for the future.”

As part of this commitment, Forever has increased dedicated research and development time across its five studios, treating exploration as core infrastructure rather than a discretionary luxury, and ensuring the group’s work continues to set a visibly higher bar.

Over the last five years, Forever has grown from a single independent studio into a global collective of creative businesses spanning North America and Europe. During that time, the group has delivered some of the industry’s most recognised and talked-about work, forged long-term partnerships with many of the world’s most ambitious brands, and built a reputation for combining creative excellence with strong and sustainable growth.

Today, the group brings together more than 200 people across FutureDeluxe, Tendril, Builders Club, Found and Trizz, collaborating with brands including OpenAI, Meta, Ferrari, ESPN, Apple, Aston Martin, Coinbase, Samsung and Moncler. Along the way, Forever has consistently demonstrated that creative ambition and commercial success are not mutually exclusive.

Rather than consolidating its studios into a single brand, Forever has pioneered a different model, bringing together distinctive creative voices under one roof while preserving the culture, talent and identity that make each studio special . As a result, the output of Forever’s studios in motion design and immersive work is globally recognised and admired.

The appointment of Bahry also reflects the increasing importance of North America to Forever’s future. With many of the group’s most significant client relationships based in the United States, having executive leadership closer to those partners will enable deeper collaboration and stronger long-term relationships. Bahry will be based in Toronto, helping the group orchestrate international scaling alongside more deeply localised execution for clients across North America.

“The U.S. has been central to our story for years and represents a huge opportunity for the future,” added Callahan. “Many of our closest client relationships are there, and being closer to those teams, both geographically and culturally, allows us to collaborate more deeply and better support some of the world’s most ambitious brands as they tackle increasingly complex creative challenges.”

“Over the last five years, our team has built something rare,” said Bahry. “Forever has assembled an extraordinary collection of studios, each with its own voice and perspective, united by a shared belief in creativity and craft. We’re entering a period of profound change for our industry. AI will transform how work gets made, but that only increases the value of original ideas, taste, craft, curiosity and experienced creative leadership. The businesses that thrive will be those that use technology to amplify creativity.”

“Our ambition is to keep building the most creatively ambitious group in the world: one where exceptional people do the best work of their careers, where technology strengthens creativity, and where the work we make moves culture and builds enduring relationships with the world’s most exciting brands.”