Hong Kong – Hong Kong-headquartered global news company The South China Morning Post (SCMP) has announced the appointment of Lou Wee as its new director of global strategic business

Based in Hong Kong, Wee’s role sits within the Post’s Advertising and Marketing Solutions (AMS) business with the mandate to build and nurture long-term partnerships with global strategic accounts. 

Wee rejoins SCMP after his move to VICE Media as vice president of sales and brand partnerships, APAC in 2022. In SCMP, he previously held the roles of head of advertising sales for Hong Kong and regional markets as well as regional director of advertising and partnerships for more than three years. 

With over 15 years of diverse media and advertising experience acquired from Hong Kong and Singapore, Wee counts VICE Media, FOX Networks Group, CNBC, and The Wall Street Journal amongst his prior career appointments where he was responsible for advertising sales and partnerships.

Commenting on his appointment, Wee said, “Hong Kong holds a very special place in my heart – not only has it been my home base for the past 8 years, I also owe much of the success that I enjoy in my personal and professional life to this city.”

He added, “My appointment and return to SCMP comes at an exciting point of the Post’s journey as it enters its 120th year of journalistic legacy, the reopening of Hong Kong to the rest of the world and a tech-forward next-phase which will continue to pave the way for SCMP’s leading role in the Asia media industry.”

Kevin Huang, chief operating officer of SCMP also said that Wee’s rich industry and regional background reflects the mission of SCMP’s global strategic business, which is to work with partners worldwide in targeting respective local markets across APAC and globally.

Huang added, “As our readers are a global community, the majority of which comprises the APAC market with a particularly strong presence in Hong Kong, Singapore and the rest of Southeast Asia, followed by the North America market, Wee’s homecoming highlights the Post’s robust regional position and strong confidence in Asia as a leading global hub for media and advertising.”

This follows Sophia Yu’s appointment as managing director of SCMP’s magazine division, SCMP Hearst.

Singapore – Global multi-platform media company VICE Media Group (VMG) has appointed media executive Lou Wee as its sales and brand partnerships lead in Asia-Pacific. The appointment follows VMG’s continued operations in the region with investments in new hires and an expansion of VICE World News operations.

In his new role, Wee will continue building VICE’s reputation as leaders of branded content in Asia and drive commercial partnerships for VICE World News. With more than a decade of experience at some of the world’s premier media brands, Wee joins from the South China Morning Post. He has also held senior commercial roles at CNBC Asia and The Wall Street Journal Asia, helping pioneer their branded content studios including CNBC’s Catalyst.

Speaking about his appointment, Wee said, “I have worked in advertising sales my entire life and a decade’s been spent within news media alone. There’s no better time to join VICE than now, when brands have increasing options and the advertising growth potential for a media company such as VICE, with a clear and distinct audience differentiator is significant.”

Meanwhile, Myki Slonim, senior vice president for digital in APAC and Middle East at VMG, added, “VICE Media Group is on a roll across Asia, with audience growth flying and our unique storytelling going gangbusters across all platforms. As brands in the region realise the need to connect with younger audiences more through content, we’ve become the go-to partner for them to navigate this space with authenticity, style and scale.”

He added, “Lou brings tremendous expertise in orchestrating meaningful brand partnerships, particularly in the news space in which we have great ambitions for VICE World News across the region.”

In APAC, VICE Media Group operates four media brands, VICE, VICE World News, i-D and Refinery29, with nine offices, more than 150 employees and editorial presences in 16 countries.