Sean Chang, ex-president of Dentsu-Kuohua Taiwan opens new startup, 3-in-1

The agency opened two weeks ago. Chang (pictured) is the managing director/partner. Jackie Du (杜致成) and Jeff Lee Yong Zhe (李永喆), the founders of the 100-employee local Taiwanese creative agency Ideata Group (異言堂廣告) are both partners and creative heads of the new agency.

Chang joked that the name 3-in-1 sounds like instant coffee, but it is about three ad fanatics who are passionate about the industry in one place. "We just need to let clients and the world know that we can do better than the rest of the world, especially in the Chinese speaking regions," Chang said.

Chang will start the account service team and will utilize Ideata's creative services until 3-in-1 Advertising reaches critical mass and hires its own.

Chang said that Ideata is a creative-based agency and he sees no point in replicating what it is already doing best. Hence he wants 3-in-1 Advertising to derive its own culture.

With more than 20 years of experience in advertising and marketing in the US, Taiwan and China, Chang has spent time in 4A creative agencies and media agencies as well as being a media owner. He spent 12 years in Taiwan with Ogilvy, JWT, McCann-Erickson, UM and OMD, as well as with Taiwanese OOH advertising company Nova in China. He was most recently the first local president of Dentsu Kuohwa. Over the years he has served both local and MNC accounts including Uni-President, Pernod Ricard, Standard Chartered, 7-Eleven, and Honda.

He added that the agency will be looking for local clients in Greater China as the direction for its future. “Lots of friends in the industry are telling me clients in China don’t mind to hire agencies from Taipei, as Taiwanese agencies have a high level of advertising quality" he said. "For example, clients in Guangzhou used to only use agencies in Beijing, Shanghai or from Hong Kong, but as the flying distance is similar for Taipei, and commuting is much freer and more convenient than before.”

Chang added that somehow it is the right timing for him to what what he most likes to do, not what somebody wants him to do.

That sentiment may be shared by a lot of people, as the last couple years have seen a number of ex-4A agency heads and senior managers found or join on with independent startups in Greater China.

Reported back in April, Kenneth Wan and Eddie Ngan, general managers of GroupM Interaction Hong Kong, resigned and opened their own digital venture called The Bread Digital. Subsquently, former GroupM CEO KK Tsang stepped in as an invester and as a mentor  to accelerate the growth of the digital startup.

Last year, former JWT Hong Kong CEO Desmond So opened a new agency, Uth Creative Group, as managing partner.

Another 4A agency veteran Chris Kyme has opened its own Hong Kong-based start-up creative boutique agency Kymechow. 

Henry Chu朱企成, former long-serving MD Bates Taiwan has formed Inspire Digital in Taipei.

In March 2011, former BBDO Taiwan executives and ad industry veterans Vincent Wu, Andy Lee, Longer Lee and Jeff Fan launched Millennium Advertising, based in Taiwan.

Frank Lin, ex-senior media director of McDonald's China and a 4A agency veteran, has joined Shanghai digital startup Starnet as chief operating officer.