Notch and Riverorchid form joint venture to expand across Indochina

Under the agreement, Notch and Riverorchid Digital will form a new entity called Riverorchid Notch and operate across Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand, and Vietnam.

Riverorchid Notch, with a full-time staff of 40 people, will serve clients from both companies including Arsenal FC, Citimart, L'Oreal, Nokia, Samsung, Techombank, Unilever and Vinaphone.

Tarun Dhawan, managing director of Notch, who will be leading the JV, said combining Notch's significant presence and client base in Vietnam, and Riverorchid Digital's existing operations in Indochina, Riverorchid aims to build the region's premier specialist digital network.

“The merger has allowed us to create a scale business, and bring together the competencies and capabilities of both agencies,” Santiphong Pimolsaengsuriya (known as "Pick"), CEO of Riverorchid, told Campaign Asia-Pacific. “This allows us to accelerate growth of our now joint digital offer in Vietnam and across Indochina, with an initial heavy focus on Cambodia and Myanmar.”

Pick said clients in Vietnam will have access to a larger team with greater breadth and depth of competencies, while clients in Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar will have access to an unparalleled digital capability.

“With the explosion of 3G/4G in Laos and Cambodia, and Myanmar is about to leapfrog straight into the 21st century, we see huge opportunity for clients in digital in general and mobile in particular,” he said. “We will be able to offer creative, production and writing capabilities that no other network will be able to match.”