GroupM’s largest and newest agency, EssenceMediacom has annouced Pippa Berlocher as the new CEO for Australia and New Zealand. Current boss Pat Crowley who led the agency through the merger between Essence and MediaCom, is moving internally to a client-facing role as managing partner.
From the last two years, Berlocher was the APAC president at IPG Mediabrands’ performance marketing agency Reprise. The new stint will mean Berlocher relocates from Singapore to Sydney as she takes over from Crowley later in April this year.
"Having the chance to lead a newly created agency, with the depth of talent and capability in EssenceMediacom and the scale of the global network is a once in a lifetime opportunity that I am incredibly excited about," says Berlocher.
"I love the agency’s positioning to deliver 'Breakthrough Thinking for Brands' and really push the boundaries of where we can have an impact for our clients, empower our people and drive culture. I know we are going to create something truly special for the ANZ market and I can’t wait to get started.”
Berlocher is the second CEO to be hired by GroupM's ANZ chief Aimee Buchanan from the Mediabrands agency; earlier in 2022 Reprise's Maria Grivas was appointed as CEO, Mindshare, ANZ. Moreover, this is the second high-profile APAC-level Mediabrands executive to leave Singapore for EssenceMediacom in Australia this year after Initiative's former APAC chief strategist Matt Scotton headed down under last month to join the GroupM agency as chief product and marketing officer.
Aimee Buchanan Group ANZ CEO adds: “As the transformation of EssenceMediacom progresses we’re evolving and shaping the team to make the most of the skills, expertise and passions of all our people to ensure we can deliver breakthrough thinking and ideas for our clients.
“It’s an awesomely exciting time and I’m thrilled for Pippa to come home to Australia to join EssenceMediacom as CEO. She is a proven leader with the ability to drive transformational change."
Berlocher’s experience prior to joining Reprise includes launching the first DWA office in Singapore in 2009, and leading it until it was acquired by Merkle.
A well-known name in the industry, she was shortlisted for Business Leader of the Year at Campaign Asia-Pacific's Women Leading Change Awards in 2022 and mentioned in the Top 50 APAC Women Leaders by CMO Asia.
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