Tag: creative director

Malaysia – Creative agency Ogilvy in Malaysia has appointed Eddy Nazarullah, former creative director at Mediabrands’ digital creative agency Reprise, to be its new creative director. 

Aside from his stint at Reprise, Nazarullah also serves as a creative director at integrated marketing communications network MullenLowe and was on the creatives team of communications agency Leo Burnett.

At Reprise, Nazarullah was part of the team that launched the successful KEPCI KITCHEN campaign for KFC, which ran during the early periods of the pandemic, and which was founded on the profound insight of making KFC staples part of every Malaysian’s household cooking.

In his new role, Nazarullah will be overseeing Ogilvy’s entire NESTLE business, including MILO, Nestlé Omega Plus, Nestlé Health Science, and Wyeth Nutrition. He will be working alongside Creative Directors Jaz Lee and Shariar Ghafar, completing a trifecta of top-notch creative talent for the Malaysia office.

Adrian Miller, Ogilvy Malaysia’s chief creative officer, shared that this year the agency has a big ambition to win with work by putting ideas at the center of everything they do. 

“As trite as this sounds, it’s a sentiment that all too often gets lost in our business. Eddy has a digital-first, nuanced way of thinking that, coupled with local insights, will be pivotal in driving our vision to bring back the power of creative ideas and an audience mindset to Malaysia,” said Miller.

Nizwani Shahar, Ogilvy Malaysia’s chief executive officer, commented that Nazarullah is a transformative creative leader who is unparalleled in his effectiveness.

“Together with his creative leads, Adrian will be pivotal in driving strong branded experiences for our clients. I look forward to having Eddy onboard to continue to fuel the very best in creative ideas with our senior team. This is aligned with our larger creative strategy to fortify creative firepower across Ogilvy Malaysia and Singapore,” said Shahar.

Singapore – Integrated communications agency PRecious Communications has announced a number of key regional appointments aimed at strengthening its presence in the Southeast Asia region. The new appointments are namely Daniel Tan as associate director of PRecious Sparks, John Paul Palileo as creative director, and Georg Ackermann as content lead. 

In his role, Tan counsels a range of startup, VC and accelerator accounts around corporate communications, financial communications and integrated communications initiatives, while lending strategic support to other practices. A former journalist who has written for numerous regional publications, Tan specializes in media relations and strategic communications across APAC.

Meanwhile, Palileo is a strategic brand builder and visual storyteller with a solid background in outcome-driven design across markets. He has more than a decade of experience across various advertising and marketing agencies in Southeast Asia, and has led teams in designing creative solutions and shaping brand personas through visual content.

Ackermann, meanwhile, has worked nearly two decades with leading media organisations in Europe and Asia. Most recently, he has been a managing editor at KrASIA, covering the startup and tech ecosystem in Southeast Asia.

Prayaank Gupta, vice president for growth and innovation at PRecious Communications said, “With more brands trying to get their marketing, communications and content mix right across Southeast Asia, we’re seeing a greater need to tailor our approach and offerings and offer counsel beyond our core offerings. Our investment in hiring and developing talent enables us to not only better seize opportunities, but also provides us with more ways to delight our clients by deepening our collaborative efforts.”

PRecious Communications actively plans and executes client communications programs across Australia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam.

Melbourne, Australia – eg+ worldwide, Omnicom‘s global implementation and production agency and part of the Clemenger Group in Australia, has appointed Simon Kitching as the agency’s new creative director.

Kitching will take responsibility for the agency’s burgeoning creative output for clients including NAB, L’Oreal, MLC/IOOF and numerous Television Broadcast clients. 

He joins the agency following nearly two decades running his own creative business, in addition to having launched an FMCG food brand. Furthermore, he has led creative output for clients including Honda, Myer, Telstra, Heinz, Holden and more. 

Speaking about his appointment, Kitching said, “I’m looking forward to joining the team at eg+. It’s a great opportunity to work with some wonderful people and blue-chip clients.”

Meanwhile, Ubaldo Merlino, managing director at eg+ worldwide, commented, “We couldn’t be more excited to welcome Simon to the eg+ family as we continue the growth of our business and expansion of our offering for clients. We’ve no doubt he’ll make an incredible impact.”

The agency’s presence in the Asia-Pacific region includes Bangkok, Beijing, Dalian, Delhi, Melbourne, Shanghai, Singapore, and Tokyo.

Gurugram, India – India’s full-funnel creative and performance digital agency by media company Zoo Media Network, FoxyMoron, has appointed Umang Puri, former creative director at marketing firm Digitas India, to assume the role of creative director for its North clients. 

Prior to his role at Digitas India, Puri was the former creative manager at FoxyMoron in the Gurugram office.

Puri brings with him over seven years of experience in digital advertising. He has previously worked with brands like Nissan, Datsun, Motorola, Nestle, and Dabur, as well as various brands in B2B, beauty, and fashion.

The new role will see Puri leading the creative operations for FoxyMoron’s North clientele, working with agencies across the Zoo Media Network. He will be reporting directly to Dhruv Warrior, the national creative director.

“As I begin my second stint here, our focus is to navigate the agency into a bigger creative powerhouse by enabling and empowering young talent to become multi-faceted creators. I’m excited to be a part of this journey,” commented Puri, regarding his appointment.

Meanwhile, Warrior believes that Puri’s detailed approach to his work perfectly complements his in-depth knowledge of the digital world, and the combination is vital to elevating creative output for FoxyMoron, which is a key area of focus when delivering innovative digital solutions to our clients. 

“Umang will be a driving force behind our creative direction in the North and we are excited to have him on board,” said Warrior.

Australia – The creative agency based in Sydney, BMF, has announced the return of its former senior copywriter, Lucy Kough, to now assume the role of creative director.

Kough’s career spans over 20 years, where she held roles across direct, brand, media, digital, and experiential, as well as regional, and CRM. She has previously worked with creative agencies including Ensemble Australia, Enigma Agency, and Archibald/Williams. 

In addition, Kough has delivered work across a diverse range of brands such as The Australian, Vogue, The Cancer Council, KitKat, Allens, and Lego, as well as Hesta, and The Australian Formula One Grand Prix. Just recently, she also led the Transport NSW ‘Saving Lives on Country Roads’ campaign that reversed the road toll on regional NSW roads with life-saving behavior change.

“BMF was the agency that elevated my career. Now, almost ten years later, I’m thrilled to be back. Our clients need creativity in every part of their business, now more than ever. I’m looking forward to combining my love of data, craft, and solving problems with an incredible team around me,” said Kough, regarding her appointment.

Meanwhile, Alex Derwin, BMF’s chief creative officer, commented that Kough brings a unique skillset to BMF which will definitely add creative power across the entire customer journey. 

“She believes in the same thing we all do – the power of great ideas to transform brands and businesses, and we are very excited to welcome Lucy back to the BMF family,” said Derwin.

In July this year, BMF has also announced the promotion of Pia Chaudhuri to the new role of executive creative director. She was also tasked to further drive the agency’s creative leadership team.

India – Digital marketing agency RepIndia has appointed Purnima Bali, former associate creative director at digital firm Interactive Avenues, to be its new creative director, strengthening the agency’s creative core.

In her previous work at Interactive Avenues, Bali led the creative team and marshaled the creative business for brands such as Honda Cars India, Sony India, and Hero Cycles, as well as DishTV, and Oppo Mobiles, among others. She has also worked as the creative group head at various digital agencies including Isobar and Digitas.

As part of her new role, Bali will be leading the creative endeavor at RepIndia, and further grow the creative business across Delhi, Mumbai, and Bengaluru.

Commenting on joining RepIndia, Bali said that she is excited to be a part of the team and is looking forward to breaking new creative barriers and creating new digital milestones.

She further shared that RepIndia’s body of work, clients, and their feet firmly on the ground are the attributes that have stood out in the awards circuit, and even amid brands that are eagerly and earnestly looking for effective creative solutions where brand-agency camaraderie is the only way work gets done.

“And it is this quality of RepIndia that breeds a convivial environment for creative autonomy that made my decision to join hands with Ayesha and Archit’s labor of love, so effortless,” noted Bali.

Meanwhile, Ayesha Chenoy, the founder of RepIndia, commented, “We have wanted to bring Purnima on board for years, her mad digital-first ideas and incredible drive are just what we wanted to add to RepIndia’s arsenal as we go on to have one of the best leadership teams across the country.”

Australia – Independent creative agency Paper Moose in Australia has appointed two new creative directors to boost its creative department’s conceptual creative capabilities.

The new creative directors are Jeremy Willmott, former creative director at advertising agency The Hallway, and Kate Holdsworth, former senior copywriter at Paper Moose.

Willmott brings with him 15 years of experience working at some of London’s best digital and integrated agencies. He has previously worked as the creative director at The Hallway for clients such as ANZ, Google, and Dexus.

Meanwhile, Holdsworth joined Paper Moose two years ago and was a key player in helping Paper Moose transform into the full-service creative agency it is today. Her promotion comes after leading winning pitches and campaign work for clients including telco felix mobile, tea and coffee producers Bushells, and alcohol delivery service company Jimmy Brings, as well as environment protection regulator EPA, and the University of Technology Sydney. 

Furthermore, she has also worked at marketing company M&C Saatchi and creative agency Special Group Australia, where her work has been recognized at shows including Cannes and One Show.

In their new roles, both Willmott and Holdsworth will be responsible for building the creative department and pushing for effective, purposeful, and engaging work.

Paper Moose’s CEO and co-founder Nick Hunter shared that it has been an exciting decade for them of constantly evolving and reinventing how they can affect change through purpose-driven advertising. 

“I am thrilled for Jeremy and Kate to be leading the creative output at this critical junction in the company’s evolution, bringing with them a wealth of experience that reflects the creative and production hybrid approach we are finding incredibly effective for our clients and partners,” said Hunter.

Just recently, the creative agency has also announced other new hires in the creative department, namely Lucy Walker, the new creative services director,Katie McIntyre, the new art director, and Pete Saladino, the new copywriter, as well as Jason Fidel, the new junior designer, and the promotion of Georgia Shillington as the new design lead.

Australia – Creative agency Special Group in Australia has appointed Max McKeon, former creative director of marketing and advertising company Colenso BBDO, to be its new creative director.

Prior to his new position, McKeon has previously worked with world-class brands, such as Toyota, Nestle, and Telstra. He also worked on renowned brands including DB Export, Monteith’s, Extra, and Pedigree, as well as Spark, and Eta, where he led campaigns like ‘I’m Drinking it for you’, ‘Take a Baby Step into Parenting’, and ‘That’s Why’. McKeon was also responsible for the famous ‘It’s a Tide Ad’ Superbowl spot and was awarded with over 100 individual recognitions. 

Commenting on his appointment, McKeon said “I am incredibly excited to be joining such an ambitious and talented group of people at Special Group. Their world-class and award-winning work is truly impressive and I can’t wait to be part of it.”

Meanwhile, Julian Schreiber, the chief creative officer and partner of Special Group Australia, said, “Max is a huge global talent. He’s had a real habit of making work in the past that’s always given us that gnawing envy feeling. Not only that, but he’s also grounded and a good human. So, there’s no doubt he’ll make a huge contribution to not just the work, but our entire agency’s culture.”

Special Group has also recently hired Matt Bladin, its new art director, and Phoebe Sloane, the new creative, to join the Melbourne-based creative team.

Malaysia – Yasir Yusoff, former creative director of Kuala Lumpur-based digital marketing and customer experience (CX) agency Entropia Global, has joined the Malaysia arm of global communications group, Publicis Groupe, as its new creative director. 

Yusoff’s appointment is a comeback, having joined the Publicis Malaysia team in the same position in 2018.

Speaking to MARKETECH APAC, Yusoff said, “The move back to Publicis was a no-brainer for me. I missed the great creative culture, the opportunities, and the brands.”  

Yusoff brings with him a decade of directorial experience. Prior to his position at Entropia and Publicis, he also headed the creative department of local advertising and events agency Friends Advertising & Communications.  

Publicis’ Executive Creative Director Emir Shafri believes in Yusoff’s deep experience in the consumer brand category, specifically his knack for understanding consumers as people and not just as data points. 

“He knows that beyond ‘digital-first’, or ‘end-to-end customer experience-first’, you’ve got to think people first. He understands the nuanced difference between a person growing up in the East Coast coastal towns, the Sabahan cities or even among the posh cafés of Bangsar, which is so important for a beloved Malaysian household name like NESCAFÉ,” said Shafri.

On Yusoff’s appointment, Shafri also commented, “We’re happy to welcome Yasir back to the Publicis Groupe family. With his combination of category experience, talent, curiosity, and humility, Yasir loves seeking out to understand [how diverse] Malaysians live and breathe, beyond just what the data points tell him. And it shows in the stories he tells.”

Meanwhile, the new creative director commented, “I’m ecstatic to join Publicis Groupe again. To have the opportunity to work on a massive brand is a privilege. I have a talented team and the support of the network at my disposal. My goal is to continuously elevate the quality of creative work that we bring to the table – whether it’s for our client, or for the NESCAFÉ brand as a whole.”