Tag: Uniplan

Hong Kong – Uniplan, a brand experience agency, has appointed Judd Christie as chief executive officer for Greater China, reinforcing the company’s commitment to the market.

The appointment is part of Uniplan’s strategy to strengthen its position in the market while pushing for innovation. 

After six years of working at Uniplan, Christie has contributed to driving business results in the region. He first joined Uniplan in 2018 as executive creative director before advancing as managing director. During his stint, he led the team towards growth and innovation.

Amidst Uniplan’s vision of cohesion across its Greater China operations, Christie has also contributed to connecting its offices in Hong Kong, Beijing, and Shanghai.

“I am incredibly honoured to lead Uniplan’s Greater China operations. This region represents tremendous potential for creative and business innovation, and I look forward to driving our strategy forward in uniting top talent and delivering exceptional brand experiences for our clients. As we continue to invest in Greater China, I am confident that we will bring new opportunities and innovations that set us apart in the market,” Christie commented.

Christian Zimmermann, Uniplan’s global chief executive officer, said, “Judd has been an integral part of Uniplan’s growth in Greater China. His creative vision and ability to connect teams across our regional offices have been instrumental in building stronger partnerships and driving strategic change. With Judd at the helm, we are excited to reinforce our commitment to the region and continue delivering the best possible outcomes for our clients.”

Uniplan has been serving in the Greater China market since 1986.

Cologne, Denmark – Global brand experience agency Uniplan has appointed Katja Sassi-Bucsit as its new director of global communications. In her new role, she will continue to apply her expertise and lay special focus on brand positioning and the further development of internal and external communication in China.

Before joining Uniplan, the experienced manager worked in various leadership roles in the Chinese Mainland for many years, amongst others, in the management team of Vok Dams China. 

Sassi-Bucsit will be reporting directly to CEO Europe Rüdiger Maeßen and will also closely cooperate with the entire management board of the agency around owner and group CEO Christian Zimmermann and additionally the managing director for China, Sonny Shen. 

She relieves Olaf Pempel, who is leaving the agency after one year to pursue a solo venture as PR consultant in Austria.

Speaking on her appointment, she said, “China and event communication have been accompanying me for 20 years now. I am happy that Uniplan is providing me the opportunity to add value through my extensive expertise and to build bridges between my two homes. This is a real dream role for me.”

Meanwhile, Maeßen commented, “I am very happy to have Katja, a respected China expert, on board, as China is still a key market for us. In business and culture alike, the country remains very dynamic. Katja possesses the necessary knowledge and experience to create an integrated communication strategy. I thank Olaf for the strategic sail setting and for laying the foundations of our communication strategy in the past twelve months.”

Shanghai, China – Brand experience agency Uniplan in China has announced key leadership appointments, led by Sonny Shen, currently managing director of Uniplan Shanghai, adding responsibility as managing director of Uniplan China. In addition, Gordon Wang, currently managing director of Uniplan Beijing, has been appointed as chief growth officer of Uniplan China.

Shen will work with leaders across Beijing and Shanghai offices to lead the transformation and growth of the agency’s China business. Meanwhile, Wang will continue to manage the Beijing office’s client business and lead the agency’s new business development in China. 

Both will report to Christian Zimmermann, chairman and group CEO at Uniplan directly.

Wang said, “I am delighted to take on this new role in this phase of our China transformation. As the China market changes rapidly, the new team enables us to meet the changing requirements of our clients for cross-channel brand experiences along the entire customer journey. We’ll leverage the joint efforts from Beijing and Shanghai offices to achieve sustained growth.”

Meanwhile, Shen said, “We are a well-defined, unified creative network that brings together as many experts, capabilities, and ideas as possible in pursuit of creating exceptional brand experiences. Our clients are increasingly looking for the right strategic partners who can understand the needs of their business to help them deliver sustainable brand growth at scale. I look forward to the new challenge and working with Gordon and Robert to unlock new pathways for success.”

In addition, Robert Paschen has joined Uniplan as executive creative director of Uniplan China to reinforce the creative team and enhance creative effectiveness. He is based in Shanghai and reports to Sonny Shen.

“I’m excited to be joining Uniplan. The post-pandemic landscape in China presents greater opportunities for us to enhance our creative capabilities and create more integrated and inspiring brand experiences, delivered in the most engaging and impactful ways. I’m also looking forward to collaborating with this talented team and creating meaningful work that truly memorable moments for audiences across China,” Paschen said.

Speaking about the appointments, Zimmerman said, “I’m very grateful to have Sonny and Gordon stepping up and take on the new roles, and welcome Robert to join our family. The new structure will form a new One China Team with an even higher integrated service portfolio and a broader consulting offering to further drive innovation. We are confident that under the leadership with Sonny and Gordon, the new team will drive the next chapter of our growth and transformation journey and unlock the tremendous opportunities emerging in the fast-evolving Chinese market.”

Shanghai, China — Uniplan, a global agency for brand experience, has appointed Michael Bertin as the new head of digital for Greater China to further strengthen its strategic team. Bertin is based in Shanghai and will report to Andrew Au, chief strategy officer of Uniplan.

Bertin is a creative professional who holds an extensive understanding of the digital field with more than 16 years of experience. In this newly created role, Bertin will work with the team to expand Uniplan’s offering and help drive the digital transformation of the agency.

Prior to joining Uniplan, Bertin used to work for Imagination Asia, TBWA Hong Kong and Publicis Dialog Paris. His experience includes overseeing digital strategy and production for various brands, including B2B and B2C, as well as those in luxury, automotive, and retail while also building strategy for museums and innovation centres.

On his appointment, Bertin said, “Uniplan is embarking on an exciting process of transformation. I’m looking forward to working with the team to further enhance Uniplan’s digital capabilities and develop more innovative solutions. And of course, I also hope to deliver unforgettable moments and transformative results for our clients.”

Meanwhile, Au complimented Bertin, sharing his enthusiasm on the signing, “I am delighted to welcome Bertin to Uniplan. Bertin brings a breadth and depth of experience and expertise that will enable Uniplan to provide boundary-pushing digital and interactive solutions for our clients. Having previously worked with Bertin, I can attest that he is best in class in the digital space and I look forward to working with him again.”

Cologne, Germany – Global brand experience agency Uniplan has appointed Olaf Pempel, former executive vice president of client experience and practice group leader of marketing communication at communications network Weber Shandwick Germany, to step into the newly created position of executive director of global communication.

In his new role, Pempel will be responsible for Uniplan’s entire communications with teams in Germany and China. The appointment will take effect this April, and he will be reporting to Rüdiger Maeßen, Uniplan’s CEO for Europe, as well as working closely with the other members of Uniplan’s global board.

Pempel has been working for more than 25 years in PR and marketing communications. Prior to his previous role at Weber Shandwick, Pempel was the business director at Pleon, which is now Ketchum, and the head of corporate relations at Sony Electronics in Cologne.

Commenting on his appointment, Pempel said that he was particularly impressed by the open and diverse corporate culture at Uniplan and the agency’s international footprint. 

“I am also looking forward to further leveraging the brand’s potential and building a global and integrated communications team,” he added.

Meanwhile, Maeßen commented that he is very excited that they have won Pempel for this role, as he can bring the right experience to accompany the transformation of Uniplan into a holistic consulting company in both internal and external communications.

“We can only benefit from his proven PR expertise and the know-how he has acquired over many years as an executive in international network agencies,” said Maeßen.