2014 MEPRA Awards finalists announced

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The finalists for the 2014 MEPRA Awards have been revealed, with the winners due to be announced at the annual gala event on Tuesday November 25, 2014, at the Westin Dubai Mina Seyahi. Among the 16 award categories – which have been split into Sectors & Services, Techniques and People & Agencies – finalists include DABO & CO, Edelman, Four Communications, Mojo PR, Memac Ogilvy PR – Dubai, TOH PR and Weber Shandwick MENA for Agency of the Year, Etihad Airways and Mubadala for In-House Team of the Year and Al Jazeera Media Network, Blue Rubicon, DABO & CO  and Memac Ogilvy PR – Dubai, for Best Integrated Campaign.

To view the full list of MEPRA 2014 finalists, visit http://goo.gl/LNTBKQ.

Anya Kotova wins Young Communicator of the Year

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Anya Kotova, Senior Account Director at Ketchum and based in Doha, has been awarded Young Communicator of the Year at the PR Week Awards 2014. Open to PR professionals in consultancies and in-house teams under the age of 30, the Young Communicator of the Year award honours outstanding achievement in handling PR campaigns, showing creativity, relevance to brief and results. The judges of the category also look for evidence of the nominees’ ability and willingness to extend their range of PR skills. Originally from Belarus, Anya joined Ketchum in 2007 and has previously worked with Ketchum New York and on clients which have included the Russian Federation, Gazprom, Troika Dialog, VTB Capital and FedEx.

“It’s an amazing feeling to be recognised by your peers for having your dream job,” says Anya. “The win is definitely a global team effort and I could not have done it without the support of a team that comes from the US, Canada, UK and the UAE.”

Jason MacKenzie, Managing Director of Liquid and one of the judges at PR Week Awards says, “Anya is a champion of the school of thought that PR is a force for good in society – and makes the case compellignly. She’s razor-sharp, talented and highly personable.”

 

Weber Shandwick named Global Agency of the Year

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Weber Shandwick has been named 2014 Global Agency of the Year by The Holmes Report. Honourees of the title are selected by the publication’s Editors, based on information gathered during the Agency Report Card and regional awards processes. In addition to being named 2014 Agency of the Year by The Holmes Report regionally in both North America and Asia Pacific, Weber Shandwick’s global outperformance of the market and its innovative digital capabilities including Mediaco – Weber Shandwick’s content publishing and distribution offering – has been highlighted, as well as the strong growth of its Middle East and North African operations.

“This award is a testament to Weber Shandwick’s collaborative culture and innovative work across our global network,” says Andy Polansky, CEO, Weber Shandwick. “We appreciate the strong support of our teams and client partners around the world.”

Ziad Hasbani, CEO of Weber Shandwick MENA adds, “We have been investing heavily in our MENA operation and it’s gratifying that the fruits of our efforts are now being recognised by global industry experts. We are proud of the longevity of our heritage in the region, but it’s the future that matters. Just as Weber Shandwick globally is evolving, we too are undergoing a transformation, which will ensure that we continue to stay ahead of the regional communication trends and place centre-stage the recognition that creativity and digital offerings are now key.”

RedFilo among finalists in Gulf Capital SME Awards

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RedFilo Events has been announced as a finalist in the DHL People & Culture of the Year category for the Gulf Capital SME Awards 2014. Hosted by MEED and in partnership with Gulf Capital as headline sponsor, the awards recognise the UAE’s SMEs, business leaders and entrepreneurs for innovation, growth and success. This year’s Gulf Capital SME Awards will take place on October 29, and will be held at The Ritz Carlton Dubai.

“We are delighted to have been given this recognition by MEED, the region’s most trusted business intelligence providers,” says Pach Ang, Founder and Managing Director, RedFilo. “Our commitment to establishing a safe environment and a positive culture at the workplace for our employees is a primary business objective.”

In addition to the aforementioned DHL People & Culture of the Year, categories for the Gulf Capital SME Awards 2014 include – Gulf Capital Business of the Year, Business Innovation of the Year, Business Leader of the Year, Customer Focus of the Year, Emirati Business of the Year, Entrepreneur of the Year, MasterCard Small Business of the Year, Online Business of the Year, RSE Startup Business of the Year and Sustainable Business of the Year.

Effies Global Index rank FP7/DXB no.1 MENA agency

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The Effie Effectiveness Index has ranked FP7/DXB as the most effective MENA agency for 2014. Launched in 2011, the Effie Index identifies and ranks the marketing communications industry’s most effective agencies, advertisers and brands by analysing finalist and winning data from 40 worldwide Effie Award competitions.

In addition to this, FP7/DXB ranked as the 4th agency globally, as well as the number one agency in the McCann worldwide group. The Effie Index features the most effective – marketers, brands, agency holding groups, agency networks, agency offices and independent agencies. These ranking are filtered by region, country and product category.

Starcom MediaVest Group ranked top MENA agency

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Paris-based research agency RECMA (Research Company Evaluating the Media Agency Industry) has announced Starcom MediaVest Group the number one ranked agency in the MENA region in its 2013 Global Billings Rankings Report. In 2013, Starcom MediaVest Group increased its billings by 18 percent, with an industry share of 17.5 percent.

RECMA’s report evaluates the overall activity – including buying billings and specialised services – of all global media agencies across 62 countries. This is the fourth consecutive year that Starcom MediaVest Group has attained this position.

In addition, RECMA has named Starcom MediaVest Group number one in the ‘Top 14 Countries’ ranking, which is a key chart in the overall report, accounting for 81 percent of the media agency industry. Starcom MediaVest Group also retained its position in the overall regional evaluations – including its top rank in North America – and was named the number two agency in Asia-Pacific and Latin America.

ADNEC Group wins at AEO Excellence Awards

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Abu Dhabi National Exhibitions Company (ADNEC) has won two awards at the annual Association of Event Organisers (AEO) Excellence Awards ceremony. The industry awards, held on July 4 at Grosvenor House, London, recognised ADNEC Group’s Abu Dhabi Exhibition Centre as ‘Most Sustainable Exhibition and Conference Venue’, and ExCeL London as ‘Best Venue of the Year’.

“ADNEC continues to play a key role in supporting Abu Dhabi’s vision to become a leading global business tourism destination,” says His Excellency Al Saeed Bin Harmal Al Dhaheri, Managing Director, ADNEC. “The company’s flagship venues in two key capital cities, London and Abu Dhabi, are at the vanguard of a new age of exhibition facilities. These awards are recognition of that fact, and of the hard work, visionary leadership and solid expertise both have to offer.”

Pieter Idenburg, Group CEO at ADNEC adds, “We are delighted with the recognition our venues continue to attract from our global event industry peers. The Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre has prioritised its sustainability strategy as a key pillar of its growth and development over the next ten years. ExCeL London has shown that even in such a competitive region for meetings and events, it is out-competing its peers both in the UK and across Europe – pushing the boundaries of the event experience. It is a credit to London and an investment we are extremely proud of.”

Winners of Transform Awards MENA revealed

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The first winners of the inaugural MENA edition of Europe’s Transform Awards were announced last night in a ceremony held at the JW Marriott Marquis Dubai, with sixteen regional ad, branding and creative agencies honoured with the highly-contested ‘Best in Class’ titles.

“We’re absolutely delighted with the response to the first Transform Awards in the region,” says Andrew Thomas, Founder of Transform and Managing Director of Cravenhill Publishing. “There is a tremendous amount of work in the rebranding, repositioning and brand transformation space and we see huge potential for growth in the coming years. As we’ve seen from the awards, the level of talent in the region is quite outstanding, and we seriously hope that the Transform Awards will set a brand industry benchmark to take it to the next level.”

Reviewing and evaluating the categories were Flavia Barbat, Editor-in-Chief of Branding Magazine; Patrick Lloyd-Bradley, Brand and Marketing Communications Director for Averda International; Ammar Elkurdi, Brand Manager for Volvo Cars, and Stephen McCallion, Global Head of Marketing and Communications, Abu Dhabi National Energy Company.

Fellow judge, Syed Abdul Karim Tanveer, Director of Brand Experience at Mobily adds, “The Transform Awards are a great platform to celebrate the best from the world of branding. It is a wonderful opportunity for talent in the MENA region to be recognised for their work. This is key to inspiring others and helping the industry to evolve and mature.”

The categories and winners of the Tranform Awards MENA 2014 included – Best Use of a Visual Property – Seef Mall and Unisono; Best External Stakeholder Relations During a Rebrand – Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank and StartJG; Best Internal Communication During a Rebrand – Dubai Airports and StartJG; Best Implementation of a Rebrand – Gama Aviation and Brash Brands; Best Creative Strategy – Milaha and Bellwether; Best Brand Evolution – du; Best Strategic/Creative Development of a New Brand – Mubadala and Omnia; Best Rebrand to Reflect Changed Mission/Values/Positioning – Intel and Red Peak; Best Brand Consolidation – Toyota (Al-Futtaim Motors) and Bellwether; Best Rebrand of a Digital Property – Xplored for GardaWorld and Bladonmore (Middle East); Best Visual Identity from a Charity/NGO/NFP – Doha Film Institute; Best Visual Identity from the Technology, Media and Telecommunications Sector – MixFM and Turquoise Branding; Best Visual Identity from the Financial Services Sector – Emirates RE and Omnia; Best Visual Identity from the Industrial and Basic Materials Sector – Milaha and Bellwether; Best Visual Identity from the Property Sector – Mubadala and Brash Brands; Best Visual Identity from the Retail Sector – 1915 by Seddiqi and Brash Brands; Best Overall Visual Identity – Mihala; Best Overall Visual Identity Bellwether for its work with Milaha, and Grand Prix – du.

Alongside the awards, Transform MENA held a full day conference attended by branding and communications professionals from the MENA region. The conference included a lineup of sessions discussing the most successful rebranding, repositioning and brand transformation projects globally and in the MENA, and saw the launch of Transform Magazine, a global publication on brand development.

octOpus wins at 20th Summit Creative Awards

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The Summit International Awards has presented octOpus Advertising with a Bronze at the 2014 Summit Creative Awards. The Summit Creative Awards celebrates the creative achievements of small and medium-sized advertising agencies worldwide with annual billings under $30 million. This year saw over 5,000 submissions from 24 countries, with Dubai-based octOpus being recognised for its entry in the B2B Service Website category; creative work done on the Indoogoo website, which provides a free marketing and procurement solution for members of Indoogoo, a global trading network for the heavy industry. The 20th annual creative competition was held in Oregon, USA.

“Indoogoo is a unique business, the first of its kind,” says Jon Fraser, Managing Director, octOpus. “The Indoogoo website represents a paradigm shift in the way that heavy equipment is traded and planned globally. octOpus has created a social media platform for the heavy industry that facilitates trade and business connections across eight industrial categories including oil and gas, construction, marine vessels, mining, cranes, transport, earthmoving and compaction, and farm and forestry. The Summit Creative Awards has recognised the unique and creative approach that octOpus took for the Indoogoo brand. We are thrilled to have been recognised for this.”

Jocelyn Luciano, Executive Director for the Summit International Awards adds, “Winning a Summit Creative Award is a significant accomplishment in one’s career. With vetted judges, tough judging criteria, blind judging processes and strict bylaws limiting winners, only deserving entries receive recognition, and octOpus scored among the very best. The website was cleverly structured to simplify both social interactions and sales transactions among its members. Its user-friendly interface and creativity made octOpus’ entry a favourite among the judges.”

VIVA Beauty Awards 2014 winners announced

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The winners of the 7th annual VIVA Beauty Awards have been announced following the ceremony which was held on Thursday May 22 at the JW Marriot Marquis Dubai. Hosted by TV presenter and entrepreneur Zahirah Variawa, this year saw 23 VIVA Beauty Awards categories presented across prestige and mass market products.

In the prestige market, the night’s highest accolades went to Chanel, a winner in two categories: Best Foundation – Chanel Perfection Lumiére Velvet Smooth-Effect Make-up, and Best Perfume – Chanel Coco Mademoiselle Eau De Parfum. Other winners in the Prestige market included: Best Mascara – Lancôme Hypnôse Drama Instant Full Body Volume Mascara; Best Nail Varnish – Essie Nail Colour; Best Anti-Ageing Product – Clarins Double Serum; Best Hair Product – L’Oréal Professionnel Absolut Repair Masque; Best Face Moisturiser – Dermalogica Dynamic Skin Recovery SPF30; Best Lipstick – Christian Dior Rouge Dior, and Best Body Product – Kiehl’s Créme de Corps.

In the mass market, the awards were split into the following categories: Best Perfume – L’Occitane Magnolia & Mure; Best Mascara – Max Factor 2000 Calorie Mascara; Best Nail Varnish – OPI Nail Lacquer; Best Anti-Ageing Product – Pond’s Age Miracle BB + Cream; Best Hair Product – TRESemmé Salon Silk Conditioner; Best Face Moisturiser – Olay Total Effects Day Cream; Best Lipstick – Bourjois Rouge Edition Velvet lipstick; Best Body Product – The Body Shop Shea Body Butter; Best Hair Salon – JetSet, and Best Nail Salon – N.bar.

For the Editor’s Choice Awards, Chanel took home yet another win with Chanel Allure Eau De Toilette named as the Editor’s Choice Cult Classic. In addition to this, the Editor’s Choice for Most Innovative Product went to Philips ActiveCare Jojoba Straightener, and the Editor’s Seal of Approval was awarded to Max Factor Whipped Creme Foundation.