Strategic change
Strategy Design and Advertising has announced some changes to the Christchurch office and the arrival of two new senior staff, with Cindy McEwan taking on the role of managing partner and Matt Hampton becoming creative partner.
After cutting her teeth in London, McEwan returned to New Zealand to join Strategy as client services director. This role lasted nine years and saw her take the reins managing client design and advertising requirements across all sectors and channels. And a three-year stint as group marketing manager for Scenic Hotel Group from 2010 means she rejoins the Strategy Group armed with a first-hand understanding of both agency and client needs.
Matt Hampton was previously creative director at Colenso BBDO/Proximity and had been there for around nine years. He replaces previous creative partner and co-founder Guy Pask, who is now running a creative consultancy called Double Lux.
Hampton’s work has been recognised at Cannes, Caples, Adfest, Webbys and The Echos, as well as local awards Axis and the NZDM awards. He is also involved in awards show judging and mentoring Axis Adschool students through CAANZ.
“This is a coup for us and one that really strengthens our offering to clients,” says Geoff Cranko, group managing director. “We are a results driven, full service agency and bringing Cindy and Matt on board brings new depth to both our creative and strategic credentials. With an incredibly strong history of work we now have a new dream team hungry to make their mark by achieving dynamic results for new and existing clients.”
Strategy has offices in Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch and Sydney.
Fresh Mango
After a good start to 2013 with a number of new business wins, including the Travel Channel, Pink Batts NZRU rugby referees sponsorship, Neutrogena ‘Naturals’ activation, Ploughmans activation, Tip Top Bakery ‘Nourish Our Kids’ campaign, Coastguard ‘May Day’and Fuze Ice Tea launch, Mango has announced the promotion of Bob Glancy to general manager and the appointment of two new team members.
Joining Mango in 2011 as group account director, Glancy is Mango’s first general manager since it launched in 2000 and he will support founder and managing director Claudia Macdonald in running the PR and experiential business.
Glancy is a seasoned PR practitioner with more than 15 years’ PR and marketing communications experience gained in both the UK and NZ, including Xerox and Barclays Bank in the UK, and Xbox and Motorola in New Zealand.
As for the newbies, Kate Carter has joined Mango as senior account director. Originally from the UK, she has extensive consumer and corporate PR experience and joins after six years at the Raynish Group Auckland where she held a leadership role managing a team across a range of blue chip clients.
Eleisha Balmer has also joined as senior account manager. A savvy fashion marketer, she has four years’ experience in marketing and brand management at Ruby Apparel, where she tailored her skills in public relations and implementation of marketing strategies.
“They are both fantastically experienced and passionate PR professionals who will work wonderfully with our broad range of clients,” says Macdonald. “In addition, Bob’s new role will help us grow the business and capitalise on the great start to 2013. It’s going to be an exciting year and we’re really fortunate to have such a sterling team.”
Up the ideas chain
Ideas Shop is supporting its continued growth with the promotion of senior
consultant Sam Halstead to the position of associate partner.
Halstead started with Ideas
Shop in 2009 having worked as a journalist in New Zealand and as a public
relations consultant in the United Kingdom, where he received several prestigious
awards.
“Sam brings a
powerful blend of journalistic nous and international marketing and communications
experience to the table, particularly his expertise working on public
information campaigns,” says Ideas Shop general manager Marjory Embleton. “He’s built strong
relationships across the news media, public and private sector, especially in the
South Island’s agri-business and technology sectors where Ideas Shop is
expanding from our Christchurch office.”
Halstead has been
involved in a number of key public information campaigns including Going
Digital (Ministry for Culture and Heritage), TV TakeBack (Ministry for the Environment)
and RightLight (Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority’s efficient
lighting programme).
“As Ideas Shop continues
to grow aggressively over the next few years, our focus is on sustainability, which
means continuing to build our leadership team for now and the future,” says Embleton. “Sam is a
valuable addition to the team.”
Cosmetic kismet
L’Oréal New Zealand has appointed Tanya Abbott to the new role of group corporate communications manager.
In her role she will lead both internal and external corporate communications at a country level. Her brief is to develop awareness and reinforce the L’Oréal Group’s reputation in line with the business and brand strategies as well as directing public affairs.
She continues to oversee L’Oréal New Zealand’s corporate social responsibility initiatives, issues management activities and further develop the spirit in which L’Oréal operates as a business, as an employer and as a corporate citizen.
Abbott is a long-serving employee of L’Oréal New Zealand who has worked across all divisions of the company and was most recently communications manager.
L’Oréal New Zealand executive general manager Brendon Urlich says Abbott brings in-depth knowledge of the company to her new role.
“Tanya is an outstanding ambassador for our L’Oréal brands and has recently been acknowledged by New Zealand media as brand ambassador of the year,” he says. “She is passionate about L’Oréal and we are privileged to have a proven talent manage the pivotal corporate communications function. The newly created role has been established to further develop the desirability for L’Oréal brands, build and protect L’Oréal’s reputation and promote the role of beauty in society beyond stereotypes.”
He says this new level of responsibility is “reflective of the escalating importance of the corporate communications function and mirrors the communication structures within the wider L’Oréal Group”.
L’Oréal employs 187 staff in New Zealand, including nationwide sales representatives who work to create a strong brand presence in hair salons, pharmacies, department and grocery stores.
Mulligan’s travels
New Idea is inviting readers to make a date every week with new columnist Jesse Mulligan.
The popular television personality is known for his success as a comedian, broadcaster, journalist, food critic, radio announcer and most recently as co-presenter on TVNZ’s Seven Sharp.
Mulligan’s new column will cover life from the perspective of a sharp-witted male, a comedian trying hard to balance family life with a daily TV show. And in his debut issue, he refers to his first column as being a bit like a first date: “I’m nervous, I very much want you to like me, and if things go badly, I’m going to fake a phone call and leave early.”
Mulligan says New Idea is “the youngest, hippest team in women’s magazines” and his weekly column will be “a great place for all the stuff too short for a book and too long for Twitter.”
New Idea editor Michelle Coursey says Mulligan is an exciting addition to the magazine’s columnist line-up. “I’m thrilled that Jesse is joining the New Idea team, and will be bringing his hilarious insights into the world to our readers every week. I know Jesse’s ‘first date’ with our readers will go the distance, and wouldn’t be surprised if it turns into a serious long-term commitment.”
Mulligan’s first column features in New Idea issue April 29.
Executive Snakk-ing
Mark Ryan has been named as group chief executive of Snakk Media, which has just listed on the alternative stock exchange.
“We are very happy to have Mark on board to take us through this next exciting phase of growth,” says chairman and company co-founder Derek Handley. ”With a new round of capital raising on the go, increasing revenues and new offices planned, it is essential we have someone of Mark’s calibre leading the management team and implementing the company’s growth strategy.”
Ryan joined Snakk a year ago as executive director. Prior to this he was he was chief operating officer at Ogilvy Australia, a newly created role at what was then Australia’s largest advertising agency.
“Snakk is at the intersection of brands, technology and the new screens in our lives, and the business has an amazing journey ahead of it,” says Ryan. “The reality is that mobile advertising spend is vastly under-represented—as little as one percent of the total digital advertising budget in our key markets—and we’re seeing enormous opportunity out there. I couldn’t be more enthusiastic about the team we have and the results we’re achieving for our clients and shareholders.”
Snakk Media has also welcomed a new sales executive, Charlie Raper, to head its new Brisbane office.
More Reach
Louise Barnsley has joined Reachmedia as its new business development manager, agency.
She has recently returned from her OE in London and prior to that she was in a very busy account services role working with a wide variety of agencies at Omnigraphics in Auckland.
Effecting change
Ponsonby visual effects house Blockhead has added a few new troops, with senior colourist Pete Ritchie bringing his world class talents to its shiny, new but quite dark colour suite, 3D artist Matt Sutherland recently taking up residence within Blockhead’s 3D department and freelance colourist Ben Eagleton who will be available upon special request.
So now is a great time to get in touch and let us have a crack at any projects you have coming up, no matter the budget,” says producer Libby Behrens.
