Trading sails for hipsters
Tim Ellis, who has served as the group business director at Colenso since 2009, has been nabbed by Y&R, where he will take on the newly created role of client service director in the Wellington office.
Y&R Wellington’s general manager Grant Maxwell says he’s looking forward to having the new recruit at the agency for a second stint (Ellis previously worked at Y&R from 2005 to 2009).
“We’ve worked with Tim before, and over the last few years he has built up a great reputation with clients and agency folk alike. I can’t wait to have him in the team helping the agency continue the momentum we’ve been enjoying lately. [We’ve] enjoyed significant growth in [the] Wellington office of late, fuelled by wins including The Co-operative Bank, Interislander and some significant projects within ACC. And there’s more announcements imminent,” says Maxwell.
Ellis is equally optimistic about the opportunity to return to the city where he grew up.
“While I am sad to leave Colenso after four and a half great years, I’m really excited about the role at Y&R Wellington. It offers both a professional and personal opportunity for me as I get the chance to return back to my hometown of Wellington. The agency is going from strength to strength with both new business wins and creative accolades. It’s a great time to be joining the team … despite it being the start of a Wellington winter,” he says.
Ellis starts in the new role on Monday, 5 May.
A break from agencies
Natasja Barclay, the former group head at WhybinTBWA, has joined Hourigan Interntional as a leadership consultant, a position in which she is responsible for the selection of senior management, marketing, communications, digital, advertising, media and innovation roles for the company.
This move brings an end to her three-year stint at TBWA, where she principally worked on the Tourism New Zealand account but also lent her services to various other accounts.
Barclay’s shift to recruitment is a change in direction, in the sense that she has spent the last 12 years working in the accounts department at various advertising agencies.
Prior to taking on the group head role at TBWA, she worked as a group account director on the Sanitarium, Sealord and Griffins accounts at Saatchi & Saatchi for four years. Before this, she worked at DDB as an account director for approximately five years.
Barclay started her new role at Hourigan in April.
A bearded head
Bearded digital media guru Josh Borthwick has joined Trade Me as the online juggernaut’s new head of advertising.
This move sees Borthwick replace Yael Milbank, who has left Trade Me to join TVNZ as the broadcaster’s general manger of online sales at the begining of April.
Borthwick has previously worked with publishers such as Yellow Pages, TVNZ, ACP Magazines and, most recently, APN News & Media, while running Wolf Productions, an Auckland-based web video company.
He has a particular penchant for start-up businesses, having developed and managed Adhub NZ, SellMeFree and Nzoom.com. He was a driving force behind the establishment of the Interactive Advertising Bureau in New Zealand and was its inaugural chairman.
“Trade Me is an iconic kiwi business and the fact they’re letting me keep the beard is testament to a great culture that prides itself on smarts and innovation over dress-codes,” Borthwick said.
Trade Me head of commercial Jimmy McGee said Brothwick was a great fit.
“We’re rapt to have someone of Josh’s calibre and spark on board at Trade Me. His deep experience with publishers and networks, creative flair and sales know-how will be a strong asset for our team.”
Borthwick will be based in Trade Me’s Parnell office.
Family matters
Several new names have been added to the Tangible Media staff list, following a few moves at Good and NZ Fishing World.
Jai Breitnauer, who has spent most of her career as freelance contributor to a range of local and international publications, will join Tangible Media on Monday as the new editor of Good, a role triggered by current editor Sarah Heeringa’s desire to work part-time. From June, Heeringa’s new role will be the creative director/features editor of the magazine.
Tangible publisher John Baker says that he’s confident Breitnauer’s broad range of experience will enable her to excel in the role.
Tangible Media has made several additions to NZ Fishing World following the departure of the magazine’s commercial manager Mathew Heweston.
On the editorial side, Scott Cushman joins as the new editor of the magazine.
“For the last 10 years, Scott has been one of our best writers, contributing to almost every issue with a specific focus on land-based fishing,” says Baker.
Looking after the account side of the NZ Fishing World business is Callum McKendry, who joins the fray as a sales executive via a short stint at WhybinTBWA.
Tangible has also appointed Jeff Strang as the new commercial manager/associate publisher of the magazine.
“Jeff … [joins] us from Bauer where he has for the last five years led content for Trade-a-Boat Australia and New Zealand. Trade-a-boat is all about using content (more recently lots of video) to leverage desire and purchase of boats and other marine products so his experience fits snugly into our strategic direction,” says Baker.
Mango gets digital
Mango has appointed Dean Taylor in the newly created role head of digital PR at its New Zealand office.
Taylor has extensive experience across a wide range of online marketing and digital platforms, including the music, radio, airline and telecommunications industries. He previously worked with companies such as Warner Music (NZ & AU), Nova Entertainment (formerly dmg Radio), and headed social media at Virgin Australia (Airlines) and Skinny Mobile (Telecom NZ).
Claudia Macdonald, managing director of Mango Communications, says Taylor is an exciting hire and “a real coup for the Mango team”.
“His expertise will be a vital asset to help us continue to grow our digital and social offering to clients and to position their brands across a variety of platforms. Digital and social are now front and centre of many PR and experiential campaigns, therefore it’s important that we have the right people to advise and lead us to ensure we provide clients with the best possible ROI,” she says.
Taylor was equally enthused about joining the fray.
“It’s a great time to be joining Mango, and I’m excited to further enhance their expertise in the brand content and conversation space,” he says. “I’ve watched firsthand as the web has been taken over by social media and changed the online marketing game, and it’s specifically the two-way area of providing value for both brand and customer that fascinates me. That, and the number of cat photos.”
Open for business
Outsourced advertising sales specialist Mediacell has opened in Auckland to provide contract advertising sales solutions for print and digital publishers.
Founder Chris Merlini, formerly of Tangible Media and APN, told StopPress why he believes Mediacell is different.
“Mediacell is unique in the market. We sell advertising for consumer magazines but have strong business focus around digital content as a revenue driver,” he says.
Merlini recently played a key role on the successful launch of the multi-platform transport trade news channel Dieseltalk, and he plans to apply his multi-channel skills to the new venture.
“A resurgent and targeted trade media industry is embracing digital and generating revenue on and offline. Understanding the connection a magazine or website has with its audience is pivotal, [and]knowing the channel is critical to achieving sales success.”
Merlini says that he will maintain a close relationship with publishers in order to ensure that he provides advertising sales options that help to “develop a commercially viable digital strategy” for his clients.
“Publishing is a creative business and selling advertising should be also. It is about giving publishers a competitive advantage by creating compelling commercial propositions,” he says.
World domination
Rob Sherlock, who served as FCB NZ’s executive creative director from 1992 to 2000, has been appointed the first worldwide executive creative director of ASATSU-DK (ADK).
After his stint at FCB New Zealand, Sherlock moved abroad but stayed within the FCB network, first taking on a role as regional creative director of the Asia Pacific offices in 2001, before moving to take up the role of chief creative officer at FCB Chicago in 2007.
Given that Sherlock’s new role, based in Tokyo, will require him to manage the creative progression of ADK of the Japanese company on a global level, he will be required to draw on all his international experience to ensure the business successfully meets its goal of expanding further into various international markets.
