STW Group launches Edge Asia, a regional digital network in Southeast Asia

The network has brought together several of STW's majority-owned agencies including Edge Marketing in Vietnam, Newmedia+ in Thailand, and Antics Studios in Malaysia, Singapore and Indonesia, all of which will be rebranded as Edge Asia.

With a team of more than 450 staff, Edge Asia is working with brands including HSBC, Diageo, Visa, MSN, AIA, Samsung, Citibank and Mead Johnson.

Most founding partners are still with the company, except for the founders of Newmedia+ in Thailand, who have not been involved with the company since 2009, according to STW.

The new management team includes, from Edge Marketing, Patrick Looram as group CEO, David Appleton as president and Natalie Lockwood as managing director; from Newmedia+, Nam Do as managing director, Thailand; from Antic Studios, David Barton-Grimley as managing director, Malaysia-Indonesia, and Erik Posthuma as managing director, Singapore; and Nat Nunthapiwat, group CFO, who is a new hire.

As a network, Edge Asia asserts that it will provide a deeper and more diverse portfolio of services, including digital strategy; media planning and buying; campaign creative and production; event management; user-experience design; CRM and loyalty programmes; social media and community management; branded content; and contact centre management.

Looram told Campaign Asia-Pacific that each office has its own expertise, but now as a network, it will offer all of these services on a regional basis, with an understanding of consumers and cultures across the region, to deliver work that is impactful and effective in each market.

“The network also allows us to engage the best specialised talent across any Edge office to address the most pressing challenges of clients across all disciplines,” Looram said. “We are also able to unlock and share some great campaigns and ideas for clients that are shared across the region and bring new, proven ideas from one market to the same clients in other markets.”

He stressed that being "born and bred" in Southeast Asia also allows Edge Asia to have local expertise in new and emerging technologies and how they operate and appeal in each country, rather than applying knowledge from the US or Europe without recognising the unique opportunities and challenges in local countries. 

“We believe this is an Asia century," Looram said. "Increasing digital innovation will be generated from this region, especially for the mobile industry, and this changing environment also offers huge opportunities to our staff, especially the younger generation. We want to be part of this change and grow with it.”

Chris Savage, STW Group COO, told Campaign Asia-Pacific that STW has been building its network in Southeast Asia for some time now, with more than 12 companies across all key markets. The company forecasts AU$25 million (US$24.7 million) in revenue from the region in 2013.

“The creation of Edge Asia is part of this strategy,” he said. “We saw the strong fit and the potential to bring together the local leaders in their markets into a true powerhouse with a diverse and deep set of capabilities.”

Edge Vietnam and Newmedia+ in Thailand have been part of the STW Group since late 2011, while Antics Studios is a new acquisition, Savage said. At the moment, STW has no plans to buy the remaining stakes in the agencies, he added.