Movings and Shakings: New staff at Motion Sickness, pead, dentsu; Hyper acquired by CEO

Every week, StopPress hears about new appointments as well as new business ventures across marketing, advertising, media and communications. As we all know, we work in an industry that is on the go all the time, filled with talent and exciting happenings. This Movings and Shakings column provides a weekly summary of all of the movements within the industry – that we know about.

Is your latest hire, or new company missing from this list? Let us know by sending an email to editor@stoppress.co.nz.

Two new Directors for Motion Sickness

Motion Sickness has appointed freelancer Melina Fiolitakis to a Creative Director role and Matt Campher as Account Director.

Fiolitakis has been freelancing with Motion Sickness over the past 18 months, incuding for the Rep Your Suburb and Big Save Furniture campaigns and will now be joining the team full-time. Brining her unique style and thinking to the role, she also plans to showcase her DJ skills at the Motion Sickness Corporate Christmas Party.

“Motion Sickness are lovely people with big ambitions, an unconventional spirit, and a tendency to say yes to crazy ideas. Like building an eight-foot tall pegasus sculpture out of margarine, or letting me DJ in the same room as clients. I can’t think of a more exciting way to rejoin the world of permanent employment than by popping some sea legs pills and buckling in for a heavy bout of Motion Sickness,” says Fiolitakis.

Campher has held previous roles at DDB and Stanley Street, where he supported high-profile clients, such as Samsung and Restaurant Brands. As Account Director, he will work across a group of new clients alongside GM Alex McManus, and the Motion Sickness client service department. He also has his sights set on winning best dressed at the Christmas Party. 

“Mel and Matt are powerhouses in their own right, bringing them into the agency will only strengthen the magic world we are already building. I’m looking forward to seeing what we can create together, and letting these weapons get to work,” says Sam Stuchbury, ECD, Motion Sickness.

Pead welcomes two new staff

Communications and PR agency Pead is welcoming Enna Ye and Kendra Mackie to its team. Ye brings more than a decade’s worth of experience to the Digital and Social team, whereas Mackie, who has a background in corporate communications and media relations, will join the corporate team.

Partner of Corporate and Digital at Pead, Louisa Kraitzick says the two new hires are strong additions to Pead’s growing team to meet the needs of clients.

“We’re excited to have Enna and Kendra bring their expertise to our Digital and Corporate teams, working to create engaging 360º campaigns that naturally leverage PR, content, and digital to deliver strong business results.”  

dentsu Media Aotearoa appoints new GM Data & Analytics

Sam Yap-Choong has joined dentsu Media Aotearoa as General Manager, Data & Analytics as the agency focuses on helping clients navigating a landscape constantly disrupted by technology, digitisation and changing consumer expectations.

Previously, Yap-Choong was GM Data and Analytics at MBM and before that, Head of Data and Web Development at Hype & Dexter, and Global Data & Analytics Manager for Zuru Group. He also has a background in law.

Richard Hale, who is dentsu Aotearoa Managing Director – Media, says the agency is looking forward to having Yap-Choong join the team.

“Data and analytics are central to how we make informed decisions, improve efficiencies, and how we elevate and create great consumer experiences, when building solutions to solve client problems.

“It is becoming an increasingly important capability as the landscape we operate in continues to evolve; and having someone of Sam’s calibre join our business is testament to the great work we are doing in this space.”

A new host for The Hits Tauranga

The Hits Tauranga is welcoming Sam Western to the station as its new day show host.

Western joins from her previous position as a breakfast host at Sun FM in Whakatane, where she entertained local audiences with her vibrant personality and relatable content.

Her previous roles have expanded beyond on-air hosting to include video production, promotions and social media management.

Greg Murphy, NZME’s GM Bay of Plenty, says: “Investing in local talent like Sam is crucial for our commitment to community engagement and quality content. Sam’s background and dedication to connecting with listeners align perfectly with The Hits.”

Indie agency Hemisphere welcomes new social talent

Independent agency Hemisphere, based in Te Whanganui-a-tara and Tauranga Moana, has appointed two new social media talents.

Anna Aldridge has a background in harnessing the power of social and its practical application, using the medium to drive seven-figure sales for businesses and has established her own TikTok channel.

She loves the challenge of developing social strategy and creative solutions for Hemisphere’s mix of commercial, government and community work.

“Every client has different stories, needs and goals which means no two projects are ever the same.”

Opehlia Muller is in her final year at Te Herenga Waka Victoria University of Wellington and has a passion for social media and content creation, with a drive to put these skills to use within an agency environment.   

“I jumped at the chance to join the Hemisphere whānau for the growth it provides me as an (almost) communications graduate, and the opportunity to get stuck in to some inspirational mahi!” says Muller.

Image: Ophelia Muller (left) and Anna Aldridge (right), new ambidextrous thinkers at Hemisphere.

International director joins local film company

A director known for his inventive storytelling and visual sophistication has joined Film Construction.

Tobias Nathan is originally from Los Angeles, and has been most recently based in Sydney.

He’s made a name for himself in advertising with campaigns for Apple Music, Samsung, Vodafone, Nespresso and Grey Goose, as well as music videos for artists like GEazy, Miguel, Lauv, Walk the Moon, and Alessia Cara which boast over one billion views.

His roots as a journalist add allow him to delve deeper into his stories and make him exciting, fresh voice for the market in Aotearoa.

“Creatives want a director with a unique vision, and Tobias has this in spades,” says Belinda Bradley, Executive Producer at Film Construction.

“His craft and storytelling are complemented by his imaginative shot-making.”

Nathan says he’s long admired New Zealand’s work as well as the team at Film Construction and is looking forward to working on projects that connect on a human level.

CEO acquires Hyper New Zealand

Retail media business Hyper New Zealand has gained full independence with CEO Ben Partington buying out (literal) parent company, Waitapu Group.

As the two companies settle on different priorities and diverge paths, independence was an important move to reaffirm Hyper’s commitment to itself and its clients, says Partington.

“I’m proud to say that Hyper has grown into a serious player in the retail media and marketing space. Our vision is clear, as is our investment pathway, and we’re really excited to provide incremental utility to our clients in the near future.

“I wholeheartedly thank the Waitapu Group and my family for all their backing and support over the years.”

Agency leader joins Likeable Lab as Non-executive Chairman

Strahan Wallis has joined Likeable Lab’s board as non-executive chairman to guide the agency through the next stage of its development. Wallis’ previous roles include CEO of Clemenger Group and managing director of Porter Novelli, both in the US and in Aotearoa.

Likeable Lab owner and manager Nick McDonald says he’s spent the last eight years figuring out how to run a marketing agency as he went along, and to find a chair as experienced as Wallis is huge.

“Every problem, every challenge and every opportunity we encounter, he has been there, done that, and earned the stripes. That knowledge and experience is helping to fast-track Likeable Lab like never before.”

Alchemy CyberDefence announces new managing director and new partnership

Alchemy CyberDefence has announced Ben Ross will be joining the team as Managing Director for Australia and New Zealand.

Ross brings 20 years of expertise in telecommunications, cybersecurity, and IT sectors, including at Spark New Zealand, Trend Micro, and F-Secure.

“Having worked with Ben before, I’m thrilled to appoint him as Managing Director. He embodies ACD’s ethos of making a genuine impact, streamlining costs, ensuring compliance, and securing digital operations,” says Indi Siriniwasa, CEO of ACD.

In addition, Alchemy CyberDefence also has a new partnership with cybersecurity company, Content Security. This collaboration aims to provide Australian organisations with superior cybersecurity postures through robust security architecture, secure cloud solutions, and advanced forensics.

The post Movings and Shakings: New staff at Motion Sickness, pead, dentsu; Hyper acquired by CEO appeared first on stoppress.co.nz.

stoppress.co.nz