Zenith Malaysia splits in two, ends franchise structure

After more than 20 years as a Publicis Groupe franchise owned by CEO Gerald Miranda, Zenith Media Malaysia has ended that arrangement.

The local operations, including the same company number, staff and local clients like BMW and Petronas will now form Invictus Blue, a rebranded independent agency headed by Miranda.  Former Zenith Media Malaysia managing director David Soo will continue in his MD capacity for Invictus Blue.

The new Zenith Media Malaysia, meanwhile, will now be run as a wholly owned Publicis Groupe operation, which will include the staff and servicing of existing global clients like Nestle, Coty and the Singapore Tourism Board. 

Publicis Growth Officer Andrew Leong, who currently heads up Malaysian operations for other Publicis Media agencies in Malaysia, like Starcom, Blue 449 and Spark Foundry, will now add Zenith Malaysia to his remit.

Campaign understands that the new Zenith Publicis Groupe operation is expected to build on its existing global client services in Malaysia to eventually grow its own local operations in the market.