Singapore – Virtue, the creative agency under media company VICE, has appointed Lesley John to be its managing director for the Asia-Pacific region, establishing the company’s focus on the region as a key growth market.

Through the appointed role, John will oversee Virtue’s business and teams across the region including offices in India, Indonesia, Korea, and Japan from its Singapore hub.

She joins from S4 Capital-owned data, content and production company, MediaMonks, where she served as head of client services in Singapore. Prior to that, she held senior and regional positions at agencies VCCP, Arcade, and BBH.

“I am extremely thrilled to be joining the team. Virtue has an incredibly unique offering that stands out within the APAC market. From the agency’s sheer talent to its cultural access within VICE, to its differentiating proposition, there is immense opportunity to help drive growth for brands in the region looking to become part of the ever-evolving cultural landscape,” John said regarding her appointment.

She will be reporting to Virtue’s co-presidents, Colin Mitchell and Chris Garbutt.

Mitchell said, “The APAC market is incredibly diverse and offers Virtue considerable opportunities to deliver culturally impactful work for brands. We continue to invest in our Singapore hub and there is exciting growth potential in other territories, including China and India. Lesley is a brilliant and seasoned leader, who will drive this, to ensure Virtue delivers for clients across the region.” 

Virtue has added new clients across the region, including Coca-Cola, Procter & Gamble and Diageo over the past six months. The agency said it is set to announce a string of new appointments, in addition to exploring opportunities to support its clients and brands in new markets across the region.

New Zealand – Pedestrian Group, one of the largest youth-focused publishers in ANZ, has promoted Jaimee Wiggins, its senior advertising and partnerships manager, to the new position of head of partnerships for New Zealand

The appointment of Wiggins comes after Pedestrian Group inked a long-term partnership with VICE Media Group to be the exclusive publishing and commercial partner for VICE ANZ and Refinery29 ANZ, which launched on 29 July in the Australian and New Zealand markets. 

The new role will see Wiggins lead commercial endeavors for VICE and Refinery29 in New Zealand effective immediately.

Rachel Tikey, Pedestrian Group’s commercial director, says of Wiggins, “Jaimee is a top-performing commercial leader within our business and the ANZ market. She has been a key part of Pedestrian Group’s growth over the past few years – her ability to marry creativity and client objectives for each of Pedestrian Group’s brands is best in class. Jaimee is absolutely the perfect power woman to steer this new arm of our business to success and we can not wait to see what magic she conjures for Kiwi brands across VICE and Refinery29.”

VICE is an international network of digital content, while Refinery29 is a media and entertainment platform focused on young women. Pedestrian Group is also home to other content destinations PEDESTRIAN.TV, Business Insider Australia, Lifehacker Australia, and Gizmodo Australia. 

Wiggins commented, “I am delighted to be given a new challenge at Pedestrian Group and the opportunity to head up partnerships in New Zealand. Originally a Kiwi, I’m not only excited to work in a market that means so much to me, but also to be able to work with the heritage brands I grew up with and to reconnect with people I know.”

She adds, “New Zealand is consistently a challenger market and I can’t wait to work on campaigns that continue to push boundaries and leave their mark on young Kiwis across VICE and Refinery29.”