Singapore – Recommerce platform Carousell has launched a new end-to-end service ‘Sell to Carousell’ in Singapore; the latest movement of the platform following its acquisition of Laku6, an Indonesian electronics recommerce platform, in the early part of H2 2022.

The new service affords users in Singapore an advanced option to sell their mobile phones directly to Carousell in under 24 hours from the comfort of their homes or by dropping off their phones at any iStudio outlet, the Apple premium reseller.

At the heart of the new solution is the quick on-the-spot diagnosis which is made possible through Laku6’s proprietary AI-first diagnostic technology. Carousell is able to inspect the condition of secondhand mobile phones in under two minutes and confirm the final quote through its own smart pricing algorithm.

Quek Siu Rui, Group CEO and co-founder of the Carousell Group, shared that since the integration of Laku6, they have seen a growth of 55% in the past half year alone in mobile phone transactions.

“There is huge potential for electronics recommerce in Greater Southeast Asia, which is slated to grow over 2.5X to US$18.6 billion by 2026, and Carousell Group is well placed to cement our leadership,” said Quek.

Founder of Laku6 Alvin Yap shared that since finding out consumers’ sentiment of seeing the activity of selling their mobile phones as burdensome through their own user research, they have been working on developing solutions tailored to local market needs.

“Since the soft launch in September 2022, the program has shown signs of a strong product market fit with thousands of phones processed,” said Yap.

The process for ‘Sell to Carousell’ starts with users filling in a short form about their phone condition on the app or website to get an estimated quote. Afterwards, users will be able to choose if they want to have a Carousell agent visit their home for device inspection and have an instant payout or visit a physical store themselves to complete the process.

This process has been made fully automated to remove the element of human error during assessment, at the same time, allows users the flexibility to change their minds on selling with no obligations upon receiving the final quote.

According to Quek, they would soon be launching similar products in Vietnam and Malaysia through its brands Cho Tot and Mudah.my respectively. He further revealed that the group’s next milestone is to provide an advanced option to buy certified mobile phones that would come with warranty for users who want to buy secondhand with peace of mind. 

“These will give our users more choice and flexibility on how they wish to shop secondhand,” Quek added

Singapore – Committed to delivering marketing breakthroughs, Media investment company GroupM has officially launched its newest and largest agency EssenceMediaCom, which will provide modern integrated media solutions for brands. With pioneer agencies Essence and Mediacom joining forces, the breakthrough agency will deliver performance, data, analytics and creative technology DNA with scaled multichannel audience planning and strategic media expertise.

EssenceMediaCom comprises 10,000 people across 120 offices in 96 markets. The agency’s global roster includes Adidas, Bayer, Dell, Google, Mars, NBCUniversal, PlayStation, Procter & Gamble, The Coca-Cola Company and Uber.

Through EssenceMediacom’s Operating System (EMOS), the modular suite of tools and data will connect Essence, MediaCom and GroupM’s technology to make it available for the agency’s teams and clients across the globe.

GroupM, being the media investment management arm of WPP, will be able to access the richest data, most robust benchmarks and most advanced capabilities in the market. This will make the agency in providing comprehensive solutions for all marketing challenges.

Rupert McPetrie, CEO of EssenceMediacom’s APAC expressed his excitement about combining Essence and MediaCom. He also highlighted that they look forward to working together and continually push media possibilities with category-defining innovations.

Meanwhile, global CEO of EssenceMediacom Nick Lawson said, “What will underpin our groundbreaking agency is our people, and we will be steadfast in our commitment to provide an environment of continuous learning so they can grow and be the best they can be. Together, and with analytics, data and technology at our heart, I have no doubt we will deliver breakthroughs across our entire client base.”

Lastly, Christian Juhl, global CEO of GroupM added, “The fusion of Essence’s measurement and data-driven DNA with MediaCom’s scale and strategic expertise creates something truly unique in the marketplace.”

GroupM announced the agency merger of Essence and MediaCom with the integration of Mindshare and Neo back in 2022. This was made to help clients in adjusting to the evolving media landscape and provide them with performance solutions.

Singapore – Amidst continuing its growth in Singapore and the broader Asia-Pacific region, marketing technology developer Broadsign has appointed Veronica Ong as its new sales director in Southeast Asia. She will be responsible for supporting the regional sales team in strengthening Broadsign’s partner offering and growing its portfolio of DOOH clients across the region.

Ong brings with her a strong background in OOH and sales. In her previous roles, she led the team of JCDecaux’s strategic and airport advertising accounts where she collaborated with major global brands buying ad space on the OOH leader’s network. She also managed sales for all media platforms for street furniture, retail malls, cinema, and large format advertising in the Singapore region.

Even before joining JCDecaux, she held a range of sales roles across multiple advertising mediums, including publishing at SPH Magazines in the fashion and beauty division.

Remi Roques, general manager at Broadsign, commented, “We’re incredibly thrilled to have Veronica join the team, especially at a very exciting time when we’re expanding our platform’s capabilities to support customer growth in 2023 and beyond.”

Roques added, “Her industry experience and passion for OOH are a tremendous asset to our team, and will help us continue reaching our goals.”

Meanwhile, Ong commends Broadsign for its offering and customer service which she personally experienced on the client side of her former role.

She added, “It has built the best OOH platform available for media operators of any size, and I look forward to working with the team to continue growing the business.”

Singapore – Marketing data and analytics company Kantar has appointed Jane Ng and Paromeeta Mathur Banerjee as general managers of insights. Ng will be leading the team in Singapore, while Banerjee will be steering the Malaysia team.

In the new role, Ng will be bringing her 18 years of experience in the insights industry in Kantar Singapore and the Philippines, as well as with brandssuch as the Coca-Cola Company. She will also be developing brand and communication plans and strategic business plans for the company. 

Speaking on her appointment, Ng said, “I am delighted to lead the team and partner with world leading brands in Singapore and the region to develop data-driven marketing strategies and find growth opportunities.”

Meanwhile, Banerjee is expected to leverage her 20 years of experience in the insights industry across India and Malaysia. Prior to the new role, she was chief client officer for Kantar’s Insights division in Malaysia. 

She is also a well-known industry leader and is currently president of the Marketing Research Society of Malaysia (MRSM).

“I’m very excited to lead our team in Malaysia to help clients find new opportunities among changing consumer behaviours in the region. Whether it’s through current workflows or mining the wealth of data they already have through a different lens, this is a significant turning point for our region,” Banerjee commented. 

Katie McClintock, managing director for Southeast Asia at Kantar also shared her excitement over the new appointments.

“Jane’s and Paro’s leadership and experience will be crucial in fulfilling the ambition that we have for Kantar in the region as we set ourselves up for growth. I am so pleased to add two outstanding leaders to the SEA team in a dynamic region with enormous potential,” said McClintock.

Both Ng and Banerjee’s appointments are effective immediately.

Last February, Kantar Australia also appointed Straford Rodrigues as its head of media and marketing effectiveness and Lee Catlin as its senior director of customer experience.

Singapore – Wootag, a Singapore-based interactive visual marketing platform, takes a new step in expanding its global presence by launching its operations in India. Simultaneously, the company appointed Aditya Singh Chauhan as its first country manager.

With this expansion, Wootag still aims to further develop its growth strategy for India despite being one of its fastest-growing regions in the Asia-Pacific market. The company sets its eyes on strengthening regional partnerships for its visual marketing growth. 

As the inaugural country manager for India, Chauhan will lead the company’s go-to-market functions, and be responsible for driving client satisfaction and the adoption of the ‘Wootag for Ads’ in India. In his last stint, Chauhan worked as associate director of brand partnership & monetization for Myntra and led business development for Affle.

Recently, Wootag has introduced Wootag for Ads across Asian markets which aims to provide marketers with expanding offerings in interactive and intent-based audience engagement across various forms of advertising. 

Raj Sunder, CEO & founder of Wootag, said, “Not only does India boast the second-fastest growing economy in the G20, its marketing industry has evolved rapidly to keep up with [the] emergence of the video consumption and ecommerce ecosystem and ever-changing demands of consumers. This makes India such an important market for us in the region, contributing significantly to our business across Asia Pacific.”

Meanwhile, Chauhan commented, “I am thrilled to be joining Wootag and I would like to thank the company for trusting me to lead the team into the next chapter. I am excited to contribute to the company’s growth journey and empower our clients to succeed in a distributed and rapidly changing world.”

Wootag is currently operating in 13 countries including Singapore, Indonesia, Vietnam, Hong Kong SAR, Taiwan, Thailand, Philippines, Malaysia and now India

Singapore – Women-first dating app Bumble has released a new campaign that is quite a mash-up celebration of the back-to-back festivity of Chinese New Year and Valentine’s Day. The brand released a short film that features a heartfelt conversation between a mother and daughter inquiring about each other’s opinions on different musings on dating. 

Called ‘Breaking Barriers: Getting Real About Dating During CNY With Mum’, the short shows content creator Chow Jiahui and her mother open up about their thoughts on different reflections such as the convenience of meeting someone in each of their generations as well as their feelings about ringing in the Chinese New Year as a single.

As part of the campaign, from 23 January, Bumble users will be able to claim a complimentary tin of Bumble Love Letters by Kele Confectionery via an in-app link and have it delivered to them personally.

Lucille McCart, APAC communications director of bumble, said “The love letter is synonymous with both Chinese New Year festivities and Valentines’ Day. Much like the modern love letter, the love letter snack was originally used to relay messages of affection. Bumble Love Letters is our contemporary spin on this age-old practice. We want to revive the tradition of initiating a date with treats but also encourage singles to show love to the ultimate date – themselves.”

In addition, a nationwide survey by Bumble revealed that more than 1 in 5 singles (21%) feel pressured to be coupled up during CNY and/or Valentine’s Day, where top reasons include, “I don’t want to deal with family and friends asking why I am still single” (57%), “I feel self-conscious about being single” (47%),” and “I feel pressured by friends and family” (46%). 

McCart added, “Our findings in Singapore indicate that cuffing season occurs around Chinese New Year to Valentine’s Day, owing to social pressures around being coupled up during this period.”

Singapore – Brand and customer experience agency VMLY&R has appointed Rhys Taylor as its new managing director for Singapore. He will be reporting to Hari Ramanathan, CEO of VMLY&R South and Southeast Asia and Japan.

In his new role, Taylor will be overseeing VMLY&R’s SG’s sales, account management, and revenue generation. 

Prior to joining VMLY&R, Taylor was managing director for Asia Pacific at marketing and advertising agency dentsu international. He also has 14 years of industry experience working in senior leadership roles at Wunderman and financial services company Saasu, amongst others.

Speaking on his appointment, Taylor said, “VMLY&R stood out because its culture is built around an attitude of innovation and connectedness; and I’m incredibly excited to get to know and work closely with everyone who has been a part of its success so far and look forward to building more with our clients in 2023.”

Meanwhile, Ramanathan also commented, “Rhys’ background in strategy and CX makes him the ideal leader to take Singapore to the next level, complementing our full suite of capability leaders, and helping us to build connected brands for our growing portfolio of clients via our cutting-edge Commerce, Experience, Technology and Creative offering,”

Taylor’s appointment is part of VMLY&R’s strategy to strengthen its regional flagship operation and emphasise its focus on commerce as the intersection point between business experience and customer experience. 

VMLY&R Singapore also launched its global commerce accelerator programme last September in partnership with the Singapore Economic Development Board.

Singapore – On-demand food company Deliveroo has entered a partnership with independent PR and social agency W Communications to manage its corporate and consumer communications.

The partnership is targeted at building a positive brand reputation for the delivery service through hyperlocal stories and emphasising Deliveroo’s passion for connecting Singaporeans to the best restaurants and merchants in various areas.

“Over the past couple of years, we’ve seen Deliveroo become an essential part of consumers’ lives, as well as open up new revenue streams and earning opportunities for restaurants and delivery riders,” said Jolin Ng, general manager at W Singapore.

She also added that W will be bringing its expertise in ‘corpsumer’ communications and instinct for news to elevate the Deliveroo brand and share impactful stories with local audiences.

Warren Johnson, founder of W Communications also added, “Having launched Deliveroo to the world out of London in 2014, we are excited for this reunion and to be expanding our partnership to Asia, a key market for both entities. We aim to continue delivering business-changing results for them as how we’ve done previously.”

Meanwhile, Jason Parke, general manager at Deliveroo Singapore mentioned that W’s bid stood out because of their creativity, excellent media relations, and passion for food.

“We’re confident that their experience will complement our growth ambitions and look forward to a successful partnership,” he added.

W Singapore is a partner of notable brands such as Häagen-Dazs, Hilton Hotels & Resorts, Impossible Foods, and Marks & Spencer, amongst others.

Deliveroo has also previously formed the Digital Platforms Industry Association (DPIA) with food delivery platforms Grab and foodpanda to fortify the guidelines and policies to support their partners and merchants in Singapore.

Singapore – Havas Media has announced that it has won the media mandate of sporting goods retailer Decathlon in Singapore. Through the mandate, the agency will be handling a slew of works, including integrated media planning and buying duties across traditional and digital channels. 

The mandate took effect immediately as of this writing.

Speaking on winning the mandate, Russell Lai, chief commercial officer at Havas Media Group Singapore, said, “Sports has become such an integral part of our lives, especially since the pandemic. As an agency who believes in the benefits of physical wellness, we are truly excited to help Decathlon in its mission to provide Singaporeans with more affordable sporting goods options. Increasing brand awareness and a focus on driving physical and e-store traffic will be key priorities.”

Meanwhile, Kieran O’Shea, marketing director at Decathlon Singapore, commented, “End of 2022 saw us going through a pitch process for the new media agency for Decathlon here in Singapore. Havas Media demonstrated innovative thinking in strategically breaking through this highly competitive landscape and proved strong performance for Decathlon already around the world. Therefore, we are looking forward to this new partnership together in 2023.”

Singapore – Elliot & Co., the public relations consultancy with offices in Singapore, Malaysia, and Indonesia, has announced today that Vividthree Holdings, a diversified and Catalist-listed entertainment company, will be acquiring up to 51% stake in the former. Vividthree is a company that specialises in the production of immersive experiences with mixed technologies. 

Elliot & Co. is focused on the Southeast Asia region and mainly serves start-ups and SMEs. Since its inception in 2017, the PR consultancy firm has grown to establish offices in three markets, serving more than 1,000 clients. 

Its founder, Jeremy Foo, said, “It is an exciting time for Elliot & Co. as this announcement heralds a new level of opportunity and breakthrough that we foresee will come. Vividthree’s expertise will be invaluable to us as we seek to establish ourselves as a leader in our industry, and despite the uncertain economic situation as we enter 2023, the best is yet to come.” 

Elliot & Co. was previously called Prospr Communications before rebranding in 2020.