EXCLUSIVE: Y&R Brands Australia & New Zealand has shrugged off concerns over the weak Australian retail sector to launch its retail marketing specialist agency IdeaWorks in Queensland.
George Patterson Y&R Sydney managing director Phil McDonald is relocating back to Brisbane to head Y&R operations in the sunshine state, with McDonald to be in charge of IdeaWorks Brisbane, George Patterson Y&R Brisbane and Brand Asset Consulting.
McDonald, appointed as Y&R group managing director, will remain on the regional board of Y&R Brands but his responsibilities will focus on the Queensland market.
IdeaWorks, which has offices in Sydney and Melbourne, will launch in Brisbane at the end of January. It is unclear at this stage how the agency's national management structure will work in regards to IdeaWorks chief executive Jon Bird and Sydney managing director Naseema Sparks.
Current George Patterson Y&R Brisbane managing director Mike Harris will remain in his position and report to McDonald. Himself a former managing director of George Patterson Y&R Brisbane, McDonald moved south to replace Julie Porter as the head of George Patterson Y&R Sydney in June 2009, and has had a largely successful stint at resurrecting what was then a struggling business. Under his near three-year tenure, the Sydney office has won several new clients including Emirates, Revlon and several NSW Government pitches, and is currently shortlisted for the Optus account.
Y&R Brands Australia & New Zealand chief executive Russel Howcroft said McDonald's appointment and move to Brisbane is a good fit because of his "tremendous advertising management and leadership skills".
"Phil came to Sydney when our office needed these capabilities and his time in Sydney has further honed his executive credentials," he said. "We are now asking Phil to grow our group of businesses in the Brisbane market."
George Patterson Y&R Brisbane experienced a successful 2011 with a raft new of business wins, including the national Tatts Lotteries account, and 21 new staff hired across the digital, creative and account management departments.
McDonald said the new opportunity in Brisbane is "tremendously exciting". "Investing in GPY&R and launching a specialist retail and shopper marketing offering in Brisbane will provide our clients with a unique specialist skill set," he said. "We plan to be quite aggressive with the growth plans for IdeaWorks."
Asked about the risk of launching the retail specialist company amid dire global economic conditions, McDonald said: "Our attention is turning to the rapidly changing face of retail. Brands now need to look at how they connect with a new, value-obsessed, retail consumer. This means a multi-channel and experiential communication strategy. We are now incredibly well placed to help our clients take advantage of what this consumer shift presents them."
The new managing director of George Patterson Y&R Sydney will be announced next week, while a new general manager for IdeaWorks Brisbane and several other agency staff will be announced next month.
This article first appeared in the 27 January 2012 edition of AdNews. Click here to subscribe for more news, features and opinion.
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