VML names ANZ CEO and APAC leadership ahead of merger
WPP has revealed VML’s new leadership team for APAC, due to take effect when the merged agency officially launches on 1 January 2024.
Current VMLY&R ANZ CEO Tom Tearle has been named CEO locally, while Wunderman Thompson Australia CEO, Gavin Bain, will move into a new role as VML’s chief consulting officer ANZ and managing director for Perth.
In the APAC region, Audrey Kuah and Yi-Chung Tay have been appointed as co-CEOs, while VMLY&R’s chief creative officer for APAC, Paul Nagy, will become chief creative for the merged agency.
WPP announced it would be bringing back the VML brand in October, merging global creative agencies VMLY&R and Wunderman Thompson.
Kuah said: “We are thrilled to introduce our new APAC leadership team, who represent the cream-of-the-crop across two of the most awarded creative agencies in the region. As we unify our storied agencies, there is an exciting opportunity to redefine the possibilities of creativity and set the stage for more innovative and effective work.”
Tay added: “At VML we are dedicated to creating connected brands which matter to the consumer and drive growth for our client partners. Working closely with our leaders across our APAC network, we are well positioned to provide the best possible solutions to our clients’ most pressing business problems via an integrated suite of capabilities which are unsurpassed in the region.”
Sharing his appointment in a post to LinkedIn, Nagy said: “VML APAC is shaping up as the most extraordinary creative team I’ve ever seen – I can’t wait to dive into 2024 and see what amazing things they create for our clients.”
It comes just five years after VML’s retirement in 2018, when it was consolidated with Y&R to create VMLY&R.
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Lauren McNamara is a journalist at Mumbrella, covering the creative and PR beat. She joined in November 2022 as editorial assistant, after completing a Bachelor of Communications (Journalism) at UTS.
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