Move and win roundup: Week of July 4, 2022

IPG Mediabrands is expanding its creative capabilities in Malaysia with the launch of its Mediabrands Content Studio (MBCS). MBCS Malaysia will focus on the development of short- and long-form original, branded, performance and campaign content. It will also provide a suite of entertainment solutions including the development of media, talent, influencer strategies, and production partnerships designed to powerfully grow clients’ brands. Stanley Clement, former MD of Reprise Digital, will lead the studio's creative efforts as CEO. He will report to Bala Pomaleh, CEO of Mediabrands Malaysia.

Independent Canadian agency Zulu Alpha Kilo (ZAK) is expanding internationally with a new office in New York, led by Droga5 chief creative officer Tim Gordon. Gordon, a 14-year Droga5 veteran and co-CCO, left the company last week where he began his career in advertising as one of the first 40 Droga5 New York City employees. He will now serve as partner and chief creative officer responsible for building ZAK’s New York office from the ground up with the support of founder and CCO Zak Mroueh and CEO Mike Sutton. 

Boutique digital marketing agency Hashtag Interactive has been appointed by Agency of Integrated Care (AIC) for content creation, managing social media and creating an engagement strategy for Mosaic, AIC's online newsletter for Community Care Partners. The agency will also handle Silver Generation Office’s social media, which serves as the main driver for leading potential volunteers to AIC. In the third contract, Hashtag will be responsible for the social media strategy of Kidstop, Science Centre Singapore’s initiative to cultivate children’s interest in STEM subjects.

Robinhood, Thailand’s food delivery app and all-in-one travel service platform, is collaborating with Accenture Song (formerly Accenture Interactive), to drive advertising creativity and enhance brand experiences for advertisers on the platform. The multi-year strategic collaboration accelerates Robinhood’s business transformation across various aspects of the company, positioning the platform as one of Thailand’s most compelling apps, enhancing its product management and strategy, and creating customer experiences. Key to this effort is an ad-suite platform powered by data insights and analytics technologies to support advertisers in multiple areas of digital marketing optimisation.  

Esports and Web3 organisation Ampverse has appointed marketing agency Sportfive as its exclusive global commercial representative. Ampverse and Sportfive will work together to explore commercial development and media rights opportunities and forge partnerships for the organisation’s expansive esports and gaming portfolio, which includes Thai esports brands Bacon Time and MiTH, Vietnamese team SBTC Esports and India’s 7Sea.

Juwai IQI has hired REA Group veteran Premendran Pathmanathan as its new senior advisor-data strategy. The former general manager of customer data solutions at the REA Group's REA Asia and iProperty subsidiaries, Pathmanathan comes with over 25 years of experience in digital tools and data analysis. He is a regular commentator on big data and the property market on television, radio, and the mainstream print and digital news.

Essence has retained the media accounts of Myer’s, extending a 12-year partnership with the department store. The Melbourne-based account includes media strategy, full online and offline planning and investment duties for Myer.

Singapore-based digital infrastructure platform Digital Edge has appointed Archetype to build its presence with storytelling and communications strategy in APAC.

Merlin Entertainments has appointed digital marketing agency Tug to manage search engine optimisation for Sea Life Sydney Aquarium and drive customer growth. 

WPP’s media services company Mindshare has announced new leadership appointments namely Shankar Rajagopal as chief client officer for APAC, Ashish Thukral as managing director at Mindshare and m/SIX Vietnam, and Preeti Mascarenhas as head of strategy and product for APAC. Rajagopal was previously the CEO of Mindshare and m/SIX Vietnam, and an industry veteran with two decades of experience leading client accounts from Unilever to L’Oréal and HSBC, as well as helming business divisions in India, China, Vietnam, Malaysia, and Singapore. Thukral brings with him extensive brand-side experience from Standard Chartered and Diageo. And, Mascarenhas has returned to Mindshare where she previously spent eight years as the GSK APAC lead. Read the full story here.

Shanghai-based food, beverage, consumer healthcare, and wellness brand consultancy, The Silk Initiative (TSI), has set up its southeast Asian presence in Singapore. Leading the expansion for TSI will be Desmond Loh, who has over 15 years of marketing and branding experience and previously held senior roles at Toluna and Landor & Fitch.

Virtue APAC, the agency by Vice, has promoted Fiona Knight to the newly created role of head of account management. Knight has more than 20 years experience and joined Virtue’s Tokyo agency from Y&R London as business director to lead the Shiseido global business in 2020. Joining Virtue APAC’s leadership team, Knight will drive commercial and operational excellence, including building the account management team, developing client partnerships and collaboration and oversight on key accounts including Coca-Cola and Shiseido.

Red Havas has strengthened its PR healthcare offering, Red Havas Health, with three hires:  

• Nicole Phillips has been recruited as client services director. In this role, Philipps will lead on client accounts, identify new business opportunities in the health technology and health services sectors and act as a senior contact in the Havas Health & You network. She spent 16 years leading the global public affairs and marketing team for ASX listed Virtus Health. She will report to Sue Cook, practice head for Red Havas Health.
• The agency also announced the appointments of senior account manager Alice Cullam and account manager Daisy Bartlett. Cullam spent 12 years’ working across covid, diabetes, heart disease, ophthalmology, oncology, and mental health projects locally and overseas. Bartlett has been working with the team since the start of this year and now joins the firm from Scotland.

Havas Australia has appointed OIS, a provider of out-of-home (OOH) verification, as its
third-party verification partner across digital, programmatic, and classic out of-
home client campaigns following a competitive review.

Independent creative PR agency Forward has been appointed to manage the public relations and media profile for the Social Enterprise World Forum 2022 (SEWF22) coming to Brisbane, Australia.

In Vietnam, The Purpose Group, a brand and creative consultancy, and Ants Programmatic have merged effective 29 June. The combined entity, called Purpose.Ant, will be led by Giang Nguyen Thanh, managing director and a founder of The Purpose Group. She was a member of Campaign Asia-Pacific's Women to Watch in 2018. Purpose.Ant is headquartered in Ho Ch Minh City, Vietnam and has offices in Malaysia, Singapore, and Indonesia.

Singapore’s Land Transport Authority (LTA) has appointed integrated marketing communications network MullenLowe to develop the latest iteration of the popular Graciousness on Public Transport campaign. Led by iconic characters Stand-Up Stacey, Move-In Martin, Give-Way Glenda, Bag-Down Benny and Hush-Hush Hannah of the Thoughtful Bunch, the annual campaign on the country’s MRT network reminds and nudges commuters to act kindly for a pleasant journey. The campaign will launch in the third quarter of the year, and will run for six months island-wide across out-of-home, digital and social communications.

VMLY&R has appointed two new senior hires to strengthen its commerce practice in the region. Voon Tai joins as head of commerce strategy and Victoria Chu has landed the head of client engagement role. Tasked to drive connected commerce to deliver effective growth results, Tai will be leading Malaysia’s shopper and experiential hub. Meanwhile Chu will co-manage, build, strengthen and grow existing and new businesses in the region. Both will report directly to CEO Kenni Loh.

Amer Sports has appointed Nunn Media-owned performance agency Alley Group to drive growth across Australia and New Zealand markets for its number one sporting apparel and equipment brands Wilson and Salomon. Following a competitive five-way pitch, Alley was selected to handle all performance media strategy, planning and execution to drive new and existing customers to the Wilson and Salomon ecommerce platforms.