Move and win roundup: Week of February 12, 2024

APRW Pte Ltd (APRW) has been appointed as the official public relations agency for Singapore Maritime Week (SMW) 2024. APRW will play a pivotal role in managing media relations, elevating the profile of the event, and contributing to the global discourse on maritime excellence. Organised by the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA), this year’s SMW will feature conferences for topics in the areas of sustainability, digitalisation, decarbonisation, and talent development in the maritime industry.

Huge’s Australian managing director, Ben Skelsey, is leaving IPG’s design and digital experience agency after four years of work. Skelsey joined Huge in January 2020 as group vice president, client services, APAC, based out of Singapore. He became Singapore's general manager in 2021 and then moved to Australia as managing director of client partnership when the agency was launched in Australia. His departure follows the news of Huge former CEO Max Baxter stepping down in late January after Lisa De Bonis assumed the role of CEO. 

EssenceMediacom has formed a dedicated data, technology, and analytics function to deliver business solutions to clients in the post-cookie era in Australia. 

• Poorani Adewole, who joins the agency from within GroupM, will take on the new role of chief of data, technology and analytics. Adewole has more than 20 years of experience, with expertise in digital and performance marketing gained from both local and international roles.
• Vianna Kim joins the team as national head of performance. Kim, with 12 years of digital marketing experience across the US and Australia, was previously with OMD Australia as transformation director.
• Nicholas Hinchly has been appointed as national head of performance, data and technology. Hinchley’s experience spans 12 years in the industry, beginning in SEO and SEM, and over time encompassing all aspects of digital and performance marketing.

Advertising Associates, one of Australia’s leading independent advertising agencies, has appointed industry veteran Peter Hunter to head up its new Sydney team. Hunter brings over 25 years of experience in the industry. Prior to joining Advertising Associates, Peter spent over 4.5 years with Amazon in Singapore and Sydney as head of APAC AdTech sales. His extensive background also includes roles such as national head of business planning with PHD Australia. He was also managing director of iProspect in Sydney, before being promoted to CEO of iProspect APAC, based in Singapore.

SharkNinja, a housewares and lifestyle solutions brand, has appointed VaynerMedia Australia as its first creative and media agency of record for the New Zealand market. VaynerMedia Australia will take the lead in managing the brand’s Shark Home, Shark Beauty, and Ninja Kitchen portfolios, amplifying their presence and product visibility across New Zealand. This includes strategy, creative development, production, media planning and buying, and the management of an always-on influencer strategy.

Attivo Group has consolidated its PR function and launched a new trans-Tasman agency brand—Tonic Communications. Led by integrated communications leader Georgia Coleman, who joined Attivo as general manager PR in March last year, Tonic, headquartered in Auckland, will focus on strategic consumer public relations, social media, influencer management, content, events and activations, both within New Zealand and in Australia. Operating under its own name, Tonic will continue to work in collaboration with other Attivo Group agencies.

MBCS Australia has strengthened its creative offering with the appointment of established creative duo Abby Clark as copy writer and Laura Murphy as art director, effective immediately. Both are based in Sydney. Both join the agency following a two-year stint at CX Lavendar, working on creative strategy for clients such as Headspace Australia, Westpac and NBN.

MSL India has appointed Pallavi Bahuguna as senior vice president and head of MSL’s North operations. She will be responsible for providing strategic counsel to MSL’s clients in the technology and allied sectors at a national level. Bahuguna will also be a part of MSL’s Indian leadership team. She moves from American Express, where she was director of corporate affairs and communications. In a career spanning over 19 years, she has also worked with Integral PR and Weber Shandwick, among others. 

Made This, Clemenger Group’s specialist production company has appointed Marie-Céline Merret Wirström “MC” to head up the creative technology capability which includes all things experiential, immersive storytelling, gaming, AR & VR, XR, AI and content automation. Prior to her current role, Wirström helped establish MediaMonks in Australia and New Zealand together with Made This managing director, Vinne Schifferstein. She has also previously been with MediaMonks in New York, as well as a stint at Vandal in Sydney, helping the team to develop their digital placemaking practice. MC was also featured in Campaign Asia’s Women to Watch list in 2022.

Vertis Digital has appointed industry veteran Paul Hourihane as chief strategy and content officer. Hourihane brings over 30 years of experience with deep knowledge of customer experience (CX) and data-driven marketing, specifically in the digital martech realm. Before joining Vertis, he served in senior management roles with multinational agencies including Ogilvy Consulting, Ogilvy One Worldwide and Wunderman Asia.  

303 MullenLowe Sydney has promoted Joanna Gray to newly created role of Sydney CEO, and appointed Karen Coleman as Sydney managing director (MD). Gray will continue to drive new business growth, develop the agency’s newly-formed specialisations such as 303 Health, for an expanding list of client partners. Gray joined the agency in 2018 as MD. Prior to that, she worked at Ogilvy, The Work and Host Sydney. Coleman will lead the agency’s operations with a key focus on building high-performance teams, further growing integrated solutions for clients and driving the productisation of services. She joins 303 MullenLowe from Archetype Australia where she served as MD for four years. 

Claxon has elevated Jake Kay-Lawson to the role of strategy director, reporting directly to general manager Danny Molyneux. Joining Claxon in 2017, Kay-Lawson spent the first few years of his tenure at the organisation as creative director, and has played a pivotal role part of driving Claxon’s strategic and creative output across all disciplines. During this time, he's produced notable campaigns for Euka, Binance, Accor, chempro and F45. In this new role, his immediate remit is to maintain the agency’s high growth momentum by formulating and executing strategies that drive results. 

Canrstone, the research and data arm of Bastion, has appointed Nathan Saville as general manager. Based in Sydney, Saville will be responsible for driving innovation and growth for the business. With 20 years of experience shaping agencies and building relationships in the market research industry, Saville was most recently chief operating officer at Pollinate. Prior to Pollinate, he worked in client management and operations roles at Kantar Consulting, The Leading Edge, and Canrstone (formerly Stable Research).

Akcelo, brand experience and innovation company, has been appointed creative agency for the Australian FMCG business SPC Global. Akcelo will lead strategy, creative and design across the key brand portfolio including SPC, Goulburn Valley and Ardmona. This partnership follows on from Akcelo’s work to help launch the SPC brand Street Eats last year, with new strategy and packaging work already commenced across a number of brands.