TBWA Asia names Peter Khoury as regional chief creative officer

In a bid to strengthen its creative leadership, TBWA Asia has appointed well-known talent Peter Khoury to the dual role of regional chief creative officer and Singapore’s chief creative officer, effective January 1.

As part of his remit as regional chief creative officer, Khoury will work in tandem with the collective’s regional creative leadership team: Melvin Mangada, chief creative officer in the Philippines, Takahiro Hosoda at TBWA Hakuhodo, Ronnie Wu in China and Veradis Vinyaratn, chair of the Thailand office.

Khoury’s appointment comes close to the exit of Perry Essig from the agency in October 2023. Appointed in July 2022 and moving from Dentsu International, Essig was the agency’s first chief creative experience officer for Asia working alongside Ben Williams, his global counterpart appointed in October 2021.

An admired creative and a longstanding member of the collective, Khoury moves from the agency's Amsterdam office, where he was the global creative lead on the Adidas account for over a year. Prior to that, Khoury was based in South Africa for eight years as the chief creative officer at TBWA Hunt Lascaris. Here, his work helped the agency swipe multiple creative and individual agency awards over five years.

Khoury initially joined the agency’s Johannesburg office in 2000 and is credited with the launch of the BMW 6 Series global campaign, the repositioning of the country’s energy and chemical giant Sasol, and several other notable initiatives.

TBWA Asia president Sean Donovan shared his excitement for the addition to the Asia unit, saying: “As we gear up for a new year and a new level of disruption and growth, Peter joining us reinforces our continuous commitment to re-invent how we create ongoing value and deliver sustainable creative solutions for our clients. A dynamic world requires a dynamic approach."

The appointment of Khoury is expected to give new wings to the collective's regional creative offering. Donovan added, “Perhaps I’m biased, having worked with Peter in South Africa for many years, but I can confidently say that his addition to our team will help us achieve new heights in creativity and innovation."

In his career spanning over two decades, Khoury has also accumulated over 400 statues at local and international awards shows, including the Cannes Lions, D&AD, One Show, Clios, Webby’s, Effies and Loeries.

In his capacity as chief creative officer at TBWA Singapore, he will partner with Mandy Wong, the agency’s Singapore president and work closely with executive creative director, Asheen Naidu, and deputy executive creative director, Loo Yong Ping, across their client portfolio that including Singapore Airlines, National Arts Council, NCS and Hilton, to name a few.

Mandy Wong, president of TBWA Singapore, shared; “We entered 2023 with ambitious targets, and closed off having exceeded our plan. As we set our sights on 2024, I’m delighted to welcome Peter to the agency and the region.”

Wong took the reins of the Singapore office from outgoing chief executive Ara Hampartsoumian in August 2022 and under her leadership, the agency has recorded growth and creative recognition in the region. The agency had an impressive feat at Campaign’s 2023 Agency of the Year Awards, winning Creative Agency of the Year title amongst several other metals.  

Khoury is relocating to Singapore with his family for this role starting January 2024.