Ogilvy New Zealand’s managing director, Greg Partington and WPP AUNZ have announced a restructure as a result of Partington purchasing WPP AUNZ’s shares in Ogilvy New Zealand.
Partington will retain Ogilvy New Zealand’s local clients under the deal and rebrand the agency Stanley St.
WPP AUNZ will retain the Ogilvy brand and proprietary tools and launch Ogilvy International, an agency positioned to continue serving Ogilvy’s globally aligned clients.
Partington said: “I thank WPP AUNZ for its willingness to support this deal.
“I’m no stranger to running my own agency and this fulfils my desire to return to doing that.
“I’m looking forward to building a company that reflects the New Zealand-centric offer we’ve been developing in recent times.
“Our aim is to celebrate the creative and media partnership that has long been central to our client proposition.”
Partington added: “Our focus is on continued integration of our services powered by technology, creatively inspired and results driven – one that is future-proofed to deliver better results for our clients.”
Stanley St has offices in both Auckland and Wellington, and will be led by Ian Rodney, the agency’s newly appointed managing director.
WPP AUNZ New Zealand managing director, Sven Baker said: “We’re pleased to have reached this agreement, which allows Ogilvy International to focus on supporting Ogilvy’s globally and regionally aligned clients as well as develop new local clients looking to grow internationally.
“It makes a lot of sense to both parties.
“Ogilvy International will invest in creativity and technology, and leverage WPP’s global scale and investments, to deliver a fully integrated offer to its clients in New Zealand.”
Ogilvy International will be led by experienced WPP AUNZ Business Director Mark Jenner, and will come under the umbrella of Ogilvy Australia CEO David Fox, helping it foster strong connections across regional and global brand activities.
Ogilvy International aims to be operational from October, with clients expected to transition over a period of a couple of months.
Baker thanked Partington for his commitment to building Ogilvy in NZ.
He said: “The agency has been a powerful presence in the local market for a long time. We wish Greg and his team all the very best as they take on this new and exciting challenge.”
Ogilvy International is part of WPP AUNZ, Australasia’s leading creative transformation company.
