Tag: Asia Pacific

Singapore – International express service provider DHL Express has announced several strategic leadership changes in Asia Pacific, with Yung C. Ooi as the new senior vice president for commercial APAC, Andy Chiang as managing director in Hong Kong and Macau, Ji Hun (Michael) Han as managing director in Korea, and Chee Choong Ng as managing director in Taiwan.

The latest appointment changes and elevations aim to strengthen DHL Express’ leadership team and foster the business’ growth in the Asia-Pacific region.

In his new role as SVP for commercial, Yung will spearhead the company’s commercial strategy, working to seize business growth opportunities in APAC. He will be taking over from Yasmin Khan, who has now retired after 23 years of service at DHL Group.

Yung brings with him his extensive experience in sales management and brand marketing communications to his new appointment. He previously served as DHL Express’s managing director in Taiwan, where he successfully led the team on a yield-focused growth path to achieve solid revenue and EBIT results.

Applying his knowledge of data analytics, he will continue to focus on improving the customer experience to solidify the company’s position in the region.

Meanwhile, Chiang, in his newly appointed position, will continue to build on the company’s legacy of reliability and adaptability as he steps in as the new managing director for DHL Express Hong Kong and Macau. Prior to his appointment, he was the head of global strategic finance for DHL Express.

With a career spanning more than 30 years and in various countries and regional finance roles, Chiang will use his strong finance background to lead a robust network, including one of DHL’s three global hubs located in Hong Kong, four service centres, and approximately 750 retail outlets and service points.

Also transitioning to his new role as managing director for DHL Express Korea, Han will tackle the role of leading the Korea team in delivering results and exceeding business targets as they harness customer opportunities in one of the world’s largest e-commerce markets. He will take over from Byung Koo Han, who has also decided to retire after 16 years at DHL Group.

Han formerly served as vice president for commercial at DHL Express Korea. He brings with him an expansive portfolio in sales, marketing, and general management in the retail and pharmaceutical industries.

Lastly, with more than 20 years of experience across various operational roles, logistics veteran Ng will now head DHL Taiwan as its new managing director. In this promotion, he will be responsible for expanding the company’s presence and strengthening customer relationships.

He previously served as managing director for DHL Express Hong Kong and Macau in 2020, where he led the team to overcome several challenges, including the COVID-19 pandemic.

All four of the newly appointed heads are part of the Asia-Pacific Management Board.

Ken Lee, CEO of DHL Express Asia Pacific, said, “Asia Pacific is a key driver for global growth. There are tremendous opportunities here that we are keen to leverage. As we prepare for global trade recovery, I am confident that the team will lead the way in our region. We always take pride in our commitment to nurturing talent from within. This is a testament to our dedication to fostering growth and offering rewarding career progression opportunities within our company.”

Singapore – Jollibee Foods Corporation (JFC), through its wholly-owned subsidiary Jollibee Worldwide Pte. Ltd., (JWPL) has announced an increase in stake with private equity fund Titan Dining LP which owns the Tim Ho Wan brand and company-owned stores.

In a recent stock filing by the corporation, JFC said that its fund size of Titan will increase from its current S$350m to S$450m in order to fund the store expansion plans and working capital requirements of Tim Ho Wan and the completion of other projects by the equity fund.

Moreover, JWPL’s participating interest in Titan will also increase from 90% to 92% through purchase of 2% participating interest of another limited partner in the fund for a total consideration of S$7.7m. 

With the increase in fund size, JWPL’s total commitment to the fund shall amount to S$414m.

It is worth noting that JWPL has invested S$45m with Titan since 2018 to own a 45% participating interest in Titan. It then increased its capital commitment to S$120m and its fund size increasing from S$100m to S$200m in 2019.

JFC has also a joint venture with Titan for the operation of Tim Ho Wan in China, as well as the operations of Tiong Bahru Bakery and Common Man Coffee Roasters in the Philippines through Titan’s Food Collective, Pte. Ltd. (FCPL) subsidiary.

Manila, Philippines – Targeting several countries in the region, MARKETECH APAC has announced the launch of its new sister publication brand UpTech Media, aimed at providing the latest technology news and insights across Asia-Pacific.

This strategic launch follows the company’s commitment to keeping organisations at the forefront of knowledge and innovation in the ever-evolving tech landscape. 

Embracing the philosophy “Always Moving Upwards,” the company also acknowledges the dynamic force of technology and its profound impact on the way we live, work, and connect. 

The publication covers a diverse range of topics, including AI, blockchain, cloud computing, cybersecurity, customer experience (CX), e-commerce, fintech, HR tech, and startups. Its coverage also extends across the Asia-Pacific region, encompassing countries in Southeast Asia, East Asia, South Asia, and ANZ.

Talking about the launch, Joven Barcenas, CEO of UpTech Media and MARKETECH APAC, shared his vision for the company, stating, “We aim for UpTech Media to actively involve and sway business decision-makers in reshaping their organisations across all operational facets. Serving as a trade media platform, our goal is to convene experts and facilitate discussions on strategies for future-proofing organisations, guaranteeing their continual growth and evolution.”

On the other hand, discussing the integration plans between the two affiliated companies, Barcenas further explained, “We’re thrilled about the debut of UpTech Media and are keen to explore its synergy with Marketech APAC. Initially, we’re focusing on integrating content that caters to the interests of both marketers and tech enthusiasts. However, there are further developments on the horizon.”

“At this stage, our primary objective is to initiate discussions with experts and disseminate their insights to our readership. We’re excited to begin forging partnerships to host roundtable events and other events alongside tech professionals. Rest assured, there are additional initiatives in the pipeline,” he concluded.

Teddy Cambosa, Regional Editor at UpTech Media and MARKETECH APAC, also said, “To illuminate the path to innovation, it is crucial for new media entities to embrace and spotlight the myriad threads of cutting-edge technologies, for in their intricate details lies the blueprint for a future where enterprises thrive, and humanity evolves.

“We are excited for UpTech Media’s launch as we continue on our mission of covering the latest technology updates beneficial for businesses in the Asia-Pacific region,” he concluded.

Headquartered in Manila, Philippines, UpTech Media is set to bring tech discourse to the region across its social media platforms, including LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter (now X), and its publication site.

Manila, Philippines – Coconuts, a regional alternative media company, has announced that it is shutting its online publishing operations by the end of this year, citing difficulties in keeping the media business being financially stable.

In an update article posted by Byron Perry, founder and chairman of Coconuts Media, he said that while its online component will be shut down, its BK Magazine, Soimilk, and Grove brand studio will continue operating. Moreover, the online publication will still remain up as an archive for online readers.

Perry reflects on the fact that despite all of the numerous journalism and entertainment awards they have won, these editorial and audience achievements have not converted into commercial success for the publication. Nonetheless, they are thankful to their readers, and hoped that their core mission of informing and entertaining its readers had been achieved over the span of 12 years.

“I also personally want to thank all of the staff – past and present – who have put so much time, effort, drive, creativity, and intelligence into making Coconuts great. I am truly grateful for your service and I wish you the best in your careers,” he said.

Coconuts was first launched in 2011, and serves readers in the Southeast Asian cities of Bangkok, Manila, Hong Kong, Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Jakarta, Bali and Yangon. It previously had a two-year deal with Filipino media company ABS-CBN back in 2015 to allow both media entities to exchange news, features and video content on their respective platforms. In 2021, Coconuts Media had acquired BK Magazine, a Bangkok-based print and online lifestyle magazine.

Coconuts’ closure follows a worrying slew of media closures and layoffs, including VICE, which axed its entire APAC newsroom team back in April following the company’s declaration of bankruptcy.

Singapore – NCS and Google Cloud announced today their strategic partnership to accelerate AI-led transformation for public and private sector organisations across Singapore, Australia, and the wider Asia Pacific (APAC) region.

NCS has also integrated its Google Cloud expertise across its service offerings and teams. This enables APAC clients to harness AI and cloud technologies to transform and innovate at greater speed and scale. 

Clients can also tap into NCS’ extensive experience and capabilities and its 100-strong APAC Google Cloud team to confidently navigate the full spectrum of innovation, security, and AI transformation.

The integrated offering will help businesses unlock new opportunities, improve operations, and remain competitive in a rapidly evolving market. They will also be able to deploy AI capabilities for data-driven decision-making, with cloud providing the infrastructure to support AI applications at scale.

Howie Lau, managing partner of corporate development and partnerships at NCS, said, “We are seeing a revolution in digital experiences and innovation led by the convergence of AI with cloud computing. By combining NCS’ end-to-end system integration expertise with Google Cloud’s trusted AI and cloud technologies, we are empowering our clients to harness the transformative potential of AI and cloud.”

He added, “Together, we will co-create the next generation of resilient and secure AI-powered applications that our clients need to advance their businesses and the communities they serve. Our partnership with Google Cloud will not only accelerate innovation and expedite time-to-market but also enable our clients to leverage the growth of AI in the APAC region.”

Meanwhile, Anthony McMahon, managing director for partners and alliances for Asia-Pacific at Google Cloud, commented, “Google Cloud is committed to providing the industry’s most open cloud, as well as enterprise-grade data management and AI development platforms, to help customers accelerate their digital transformation.”

He added, “Through our collaboration with NCS, organisations can take advantage of Google Cloud infrastructure and services to power new capabilities that can improve operations and create real-world value.”

Singapore – Citi Commercial Bank (CCB) has launched the second season of its ‘Makers’ video series, shining a spotlight on 17 clients who are homegrown entrepreneurs across six markets in Asia Pacific. 

The series tells the stories of visionary leaders and how they grew their formidable businesses across Australia, China, Hong Kong, India, Malaysia and Singapore, and will run until April 2024.

From a close to 90-year jewelry brand that flourished from one goldsmith shop to nearly 1,000 stores covering Greater China; to a bioenergy business with a passion for ESG that started with no working capital and then went on to establish factories in Indonesia and China; to an e-commerce-led business which expanded from Singapore to other parts of Asia and now sees around 500,000 to 750,000 orders a day, the new season shines a spotlight on well-known companies from diverse industries. 

As business leaders narrate the stories behind their success, the series speaks to CCB’s ability to support rapidly growing mid-sized corporates that are increasingly born global or going global in record time. 

Gunjan Kalra, head, Asia North and Australia and Asia South at Citi Commercial Bank, said, “We are extremely proud of the ‘Makers’ video series and the strong partnership we have with our clients as we help them pursue their ambitions. The mid-market space is growing at an unprecedented pace globally and in Asia Pacific, driven by a strong spirit of entrepreneurship and a vibrant ecosystem that fosters startups. We understand this and we are actively using Citi’s global network of 95 markets to make it easy for our clients to expand their businesses across borders.”

She added, “With Citi Commercial Bank’s global industry coverage model, we are also supporting specific client needs across different industry groups by offering industry-specific knowledge and expertise rooted in a deep understanding of broader trends and how they might impact our clients’ businesses.”

Sydney, Australia – Creative agency Accenture Song has recently announced the appointment of Tara Ford as the chief creative officer for growth markets at Accenture Song, effective immediately. 

Retaining her position as chief creative officer of The Monkeys Sydney, Ford is now also responsible for overseeing all creative output from the Asia Pacific and Latin America regions. 

The regional role will see Ford work closely with Neil Heymann, global chief creative officer of Accenture Song.

Throughout her career, Ford’s work has been consistently recognised at the highest level of every major international award show across an expansive range of clients and disciplines. This includes most recently the coveted Dan Wieden Titanium Grand Prix at Cannes with the ‘The First Digital Nation’ for the Government of Tuvalu.

Under Ford’s creative stewardship, The Monkeys has won Campaign Brief Agency of the Year 2021, Mumbrella Creative Agency of the Year 2022, and AWARD Creative Agency of the Year 2022. In 2023, the agency was crowned Spikes Australian Agency of the Year, Cannes, D&AD and One Show Agency of the Year Australia, along with Effies Effective Agency of the Year, Australia.

Ford also serves as a board member of the Advertising Council of Australia and the D&AD Advisory Board, where she was named ‘Creative Captain 2022’ in the Women Leading Change Awards by Campaign Asia Pacific. She was also named ‘Global Creative Leader of the Year 2021’ by Creativepool and ‘Creative Person of the Year’ for ANZ by Campaign Asia.

Speaking on her appointment, Ford said, “I am thrilled to be working with Neil, heading up the creative offering of Song’s formidable regional team. Leading our diverse creative talent across Song in Growth Markets is going to be super interesting. I look forward to helping our people and clients shine through the combination of creativity, innovation and technology.”

Commenting on Ford’s appointment as well, Heymann mentioned, “Tara is the kind of creative leader shaping the direction of our industry. She’s a champion of creativity and creative people and has proven herself consistently on the global stage. As importantly, she’s ambitious, business-minded and tech-fluent in a way that positions her perfectly to drive work that is unique to Song’s capabilities. Tara having more widespread influence, especially across some of our most exciting markets, is great news for all of us.”

Meanwhile, Mark Green, president of Accenture Song ANZ and co-founder and chief executive officer of The Monkeys, added, “Tara is a world class talent, and it is with great pleasure we get to see her ply her talents on a bigger stage. We are in a fortunate position to have three incredible leaders in Tara, Ant and Damon in ANZ and the wider opportunities will come thick and fast.”

Singapore – L’Oreal Travel Retail Asia Pacific and Alipay+ have entered into a partnership in a move to thoroughly understand consumer insights and purchasing behaviours across regions. L’Oréal Travel Retail Asia Pacific is the first beauty company to partner with Alipay+, a partnership that has started since 2020 in Hainan and Macau.

Through this partnership, the two entities have now expanded to reach over 100 million outbound Chinese travellers in global destinations, starting with great achievements during October Golden Week in Thailand and Dubai. 

The advanced digital solutions of Alipay+ technology, partnered with L’Oréal’s mega portfolio of brands in both online and offline touchpoints, connect global shoppers to traveler-centric brand experiences.

Moreover, the partnership aims to meet constantly evolving consumer preferences for seamless shopping while travelling and enriches the traveller experience with personalised beauty needs and offers for them.

Tao Zhang, managing director at L’Oréal Travel Retail Asia Pacific, said, “his collaboration between L’Oréal Travel Retail Asia Pacific and Alipay+ is a significant leap forward for the new Trinity between brands, retailers, and platforms. In an era where the travel retail landscape is undergoing transformative changes, we seek to captivate modern travelers by offering them a seamless shopping experience empowered by deep insights and digital technology; at the right place, right time.”

Meanwhile, Joyce Lui, chief marketing officer at L’Oréal Travel Retail Asia Pacific, commented, “Since the start of the collaboration, we have onboarded more than 10 brands with over 50 activations in just one year, scaling this to reach our global shoppers. For the first time, in-depth insights shared collectively by both parties can enable more precise and enjoyable end-to-end journey for travellers.”

Cherry Huang, general manager of Alipay+ Offline Merchant Services at Ant International, said, “Travelers today have greater expectations in the way they engage brands as they travel the world, particularly in the use of technology to enhance their experience. As we strengthen our partnership with L’Oréal Travel Retail Asia Pacific, not only can we offer immediate benefits of convenient payments and exclusive rewards, we are also looking to the future to further personalize the shopper experience, both online and offline.”

Singapore – Havas has recently announced the acquisition of Klareco Communications, Singapore homegrown agency and Southeast Asian corporate, financial and strategic communications consultancy, to strengthen its global strategic communications advisory arm, H/Advisors, in Asia-Pacific.

This acquisition allows Singapore to become a critical base for H/Advisors to steer its international clients through this macroeconomic environment, and will also strengthen Havas’ presence in Singapore through its integrated Village approach.

With a power base in Southeast Asia, the addition of Klareco Communications represents an important next step in H/Advisors’ strategic growth plan. On closing, the agency will be renamed H/Advisors Klareco.

This addition represents another significant milestone, following the successful launch of H/Advisors in Dubai earlier this year and the recent acquisitions of Australian Public Affairs, one of Australia’s most prominent and successful public affairs agencies, and Cunha Vaz & Associados, Portugal’s leading PR and communications consultancy.

H/Advisors Klareco and its senior management team will take on a significant role within the strategic advisory network. The local leadership includes CEO and co-founder Ang Shih-Huei, and managing director and co-founder Mark Worthington who will join the Asia board to help direct and lead the expansion of H/Advisors in Asia-Pacific.

Speaking on the acquisition, Yannick Bolloré, chairman and global CEO, Havas, and chairman, Vivendi, said, “Our partnership with Klareco allows us to draw on their breadth of experience and knowledge of the Asian market as we continue to expand our Havas presence in APAC. We are delighted to welcome the well-respected Klareco team onboard and look forward to achieving great things together.”

Shih-Huei added, “As an independent firm, we have already been working with some of the largest MNCs and leading Asian headquartered companies. H/Advisors allows us to deepen our core communications offering across corporate, financial, digital and public affairs, and expand our expertise in fast growing areas such as sustainability and change communications, to ensure we continue to deliver best practice for our clients. Our teams are excited for this new chapter ahead.”

Worthington also mentioned, “We are delighted to partner with H/Advisors to enhance our standing as a landing point for international firms coming to, or expanding in Asia. Increasingly, boards and management face complex communications challenges as they expand internationally. We are excited to build on our offering to support these challenges, ensuring we have expertise and relationships in the markets our clients need.”

Meanwhile, Stéphane Fouks, executive chairman, H/Advisors, and vice president, Havas, commented, “2023 has been an outstanding year of growth for H/Advisors, with the opening of our Dubai office and the acquisitions of CV&A (Portugal) & APA (Australia) and now our partnership with Klareco, which will strengthen our offering not only in APAC but globally. Klareco is the leading communications advisory in Southeast Asia, and we are delighted to welcome Shih-Huei, Mark and the talent and experience they will bring to H/Advisors.”

Singapore – IPG Mediabrands has announced strategic partnership between IPG Mediabrands Commerce and Stickler, a live commerce enablement technology provider, to produce a flexible end-to-end live commerce solution for brands across the Asia-Pacific region.

The IPG Mediabrands Commerce and Stickler live commerce solution will be launched and available to brands across 15 Asia-Pacific countries this year.

The bespoke solution which offers ‘Live Commerce as a Service’, allows brands to plug into a suite of software and service components to empower their own existing e-commerce operating framework, in addition to the ability to ‘plug and play’ any part of the live commerce stack with a complete end-to-end solution.

Moreover, the partnership between IPG Mediabrands Commerce and Stickler builds out scalable solutions for brands to establish themselves in live commerce, and create sustainable advantage by owning a greater portion of consumer spend in this emerging channel.

Leigh Terry, CEO at IPG Mediabrands, said, “With live commerce now accounting for 30% of ecommerce in China, and 15% globally, platforms across the region are taking note. Many brands understand that Live Commerce is imperative, and want to address the huge growth opportunity, but don’t feel quite ready to embrace the channel. Our unique approach with Stickler is less about trying to be full service, and more focused on giving brands what they need, whether this be full end-to-end or simply fill-in-the-gaps.”

He added, “We have combined software development and service structure to provide Live Commerce as a Service; this is an exciting evolution in our Commerce practice and an important offering for brands across the region.”

Meanwhile, Fionn Hyndman, founder at Stickler, commented, “IPG Mediabrands Commerce expertise combined with their specialised partner technology allows the scale and flexibility for marketers to optimise Live Commerce, regardless of their current structure. What we are building together is a future model, for the most significant growth channel I’ve seen in the last 10 years. We are solely focused on delivering results within our clients operating framework through Live Commerce. Our aim is to empower and enable them to achieve success.”