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Movings|Shakings: 25 March

Swapping one sugary treat for another

Having spent about 15 years of her career working for Coca-Cola, it is thought Bríd Drohan-Stewart will be leaving the company to take on the role of general manager of marketing at Cadbury in New Zealand.

This move will see her replacing Iaan Buchanan, who left Cadbury earlier this year. Mondelez International, the parent company of Cadbury, was contacted in regard to this change, but StopPress is still awaiting a reply.  

Drohan-Stewart’s most recent role was at Coca-Cola in the UK, where she was initially brought in to cover for Zoe Howorth, who last year left the company to take a year’s sabbatical.

While filling in for Howorth, Drohan-Stewart oversaw a marketing portfolio of 21 brands, including Coca-Cola, Diet Coke, Coke Zero, Sprite and Fanta.

But this was not the first time that Drohan-Stewart had worked with these drinks. Previously, while working as the marketing manager of sparkling in Auckland, she familiarised herself with many of these brands during a three-year stint.

Drohan-Stewart’s career with Coca-Cola extends back to 1999, when she first joined the company as its head of consumer promotions in Ireland.  

Her career with Coca-Cola was punctuated by stints at BD Activations, where she worked for almost two years as a director, and at Heaton, where she served for 11 months as the head of marketing. 

Alison waves goodbye to Saatchi

Off the back of their announcement to relocate Saatchi & Saatchi Wellington to the new Clyde Quay Wharf, Saatchi & Saatchi chief executive Nicky Bell recently confirmed the departure of creative director, Mitch Alison, who has been with the agency for a year.

“Our two offices now work really closely together across several major clients and we actually do our best work when this is the case. In particular, the Wellington creative teams really enjoy being part of the wider Saatchi & Saatchi New Zealand team under Antonio’s leadership, so the fluid movement between offices makes sense for us and our clients,” says Bell.

“Mitch is keen to explore opportunities in a bigger market so when we caught up recently it was really a mutual decision to part ways at this time. We thank him for his hard work over the last year and wish him every success on his new adventure.”

At this stage, it is still unclear where Alison will take his career. 

In related news, Saatchi & Saatchi New Zealand has also hired Kassi Horn in the newly created role of social interaction manager. She will be working with teams across the agency, helping to inform social strategy and planning. 

Horn is joining the Auckland office from Saatchi & Saatchi Los Angeles, where she worked as the social communications supervisor for Toyota USA for over two years, developing multi-channel content strategies to support launch campaigns and brand work.

Steinlager pledges further allegiance to the All Blacks 

Steinlager has announced the renewal of its support of the All Blacks with a deal, which will extend its sponsorship through both the 2015 and 2019 Rugby World Cups.


(Taken from Stuff.co.nz)

This coincides with the step up in sponsorship of the All Blacks Sevens team, which will see Steinlager as the official sponsor of the team as they strive for gold at the 2016 and 2020 Olympics.

The agreement includes an extensive partnership for the 2017 British & Irish Lions Tour of New Zealand and also secures naming rights for Steinlager Series fixtures scheduled for 2014, 2016, 2018 and 2020. 

“Steinlager is our longest serving sponsor and we would like to thank them for their unwavering support since 1986,” says New Zealand Rugby chief executive Steve Tew.

Rory Glass, managing director at Lion was equally enthused at the prospect of the contract extension. 

“This sponsorship will take Steinlager’s support of the All Blacks through to well over 30 years, making it one of the longest running sponsorships in New Zealand sport,” he said.

“During this time rugby has turned professional, the All Blacks have played 382 tests, won two Rugby World Cups, two test series against the British and Irish Lions, three Northern Hemisphere Grand Slams, 20 Bledisloe Cups and 12 Tri Nations/Four Nations trophies. They’ve had their first series victory in South Africa and most recently secured the first unbeaten season of the professional era.”

Michele Driscoll joins BrandWorld

Shortly after announcing the release of its new masthead, Brandworld has appointed Michele Driscoll as a production manager.

A former executive producer of the Shopping Channel, Driscoll has fine-tuned her production skills by working on a range of television shows, including Popstars, Hell’s Kitchen and Good Morning.  

“We are delighted to welcome Michele to our growing team, says Rachael Weaver, BrandWorld’s senior producer. “BrandWorld prides itself on employing people with real programme-making and marketing skills; people who really know what it’s like to tell a story that resonates with audiences and Michele is an experienced addition to that commitment.”

Driscoll says she was attracted to BrandWorld by its reputation for innovation and long-term client relationships.

“BrandWorld is always one of a handful of partner companies regularly mentioned at events like the TVNZ New Zealand Marketing Awards. People know it for its mastheads, Family Health Diary and Discover etc, but few know about the wealth of tailored products it produces. Yet these are some of the most compelling marketing content you can see on television today,” she says.   

An army of young guns

Nine top graduates from universities around New Zealand have been chosen from hundreds of hopeful applicants to join the 2014 Clemenger Talent Programme.


(Left to right: Matt Barnes, Kate Macdonald, Bobby Innes, Will Riley, Alex Plummer, Katie Nimon, Carmen McDougall, Michael Doolan. Not present: Alex Smith)

In its fourth year, the intensive nine-month programme will see the graduates gain hands-on communications experience across the Clemenger Group’s leading companies in Auckland and Wellington.

The 2014 graduates are:

  • Kate Macdonald, University of Canterbury
  • Carmen McDougall, University of Auckland
  • Will Riley, University of Auckland       
  • Matt Barnes, Victoria University         
  • Michael Doolan, University of Canterbury      
  • Bobby Innes, Otago University          
  • Alex Plummer, AUT   
  • Alex Smith, AUT         
  • Katie Nimon, Massey University

All nine started last month and will rotate through Clemenger Group companies over a three-month period, gaining an insight into the wide variety of skills needed to run a successful communications business (including advertising, public relations, media, retail marketing, experiential marketing, direct and digital marketing). Candidates will then be offered a six-month placement in the company that suits them best, and will be paid an entry-level salary for this period.

Jim Moser, CEO of Clemenger Group says the company is happy to support the future of the industry with a programme that aims to put graduates in a position where they can be offered a full-time role within the Clemenger Group at the end of the nine-month programme.

“We are proud to say that 32 of the industry’s brightest young stars have taken part in the Clemenger Talent Programme since it was founded in 2011. We have had a remarkable success rate with the programme to date, with 81 per cent of participants being offered a job in one of the Clemenger Group companies after completion,” he says.

A trio arrives 

RAPP, which takes care of much of DDB’s direct marketing, has boosted its team by employing three new recruits.  

Alex Leece has joined the company as an account director, Catherine Chi as a senior digital designer and Shweta Tomar as an account manager.

RAPP managing director Robert Limb says it has been a great start to the year. 

“Alex, Catherine and Shweta will help us deliver quality work solutions for newly won business and add to the innovative culture we pride our business on,” says Limb.

Joining RAPP from .99, Leece has managed multi-channel projects for various brands, including Mazda and Farmers. In his new position at RAPP, he will focus on Telecom client relations.

Chi joins RAPP from FCB where she worked on clients including Air NZ, Vodafone and Westfield. Originally trained as a graphic designer, Chi eventually shifted her focus toward all things digital. In her capacity as a senior digital designer, she will work across RAPP’s complete client roster, including Telecom, Westpac, Milford Asset Management and Fly Buys.  

Tomar, who previously worked at Ogilvy, JWT and McCann in India, joins the agency after completing postgraduate studies in business at AUT.

Extending the brand

Voice-over agency Word of Mouth has expanded its business dealings by opening a new talent management division, Represent Management.

Alana Schultheis, the head of the agency, says that the team saw and opportunity to diversify the offering and develop the brand.

“We want to create an agency that caters for each individual person and their needs as a performer. To tailor our work based on what suits them, instead of offering a generic brand”, she says.

Schultheis adds that it was a natural progression for Word of Mouth, given that the agency is already viewed as a respected voice talent agency in New Zealand. 

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