Cicero and Bernay expands into Egypt 

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Public relations agency, Cicero and Bernay (C&B) has signed with Ingredients, an agency specialising in media and public relations and also part of the Egyptian Media Synergy. The new agreement will allow C&B and Ingredients to bring together their strategic, targeted communications solutions that are designed to reach and influence their customers in the country. By the end of 2018, C&B aims to have offices in 20 markets across the MENA region, giving clients unrivalled regional scope.

“As the most populous country in the MENA region, Egypt is a key target market for our clients and home to a burgeoning communication industry,” says Maysa-Jana Atoui, Director of Business Development, Cicero and Bernay. “In partnership with Ingredients, we will cater to the increased demand for PR services, crisis planning and reputation management in the Egyptian market, while also heightening engagement with new-age tactics such as influencer-led activations and campaigns. We are pleased to be responding to our clients’ far-reaching requirements by expanding our MENA footprint and opening a valuable new window onto the Egyptian market.”

New influencer policy comes into effect

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The National Media Council (NMC)’s new influencer policy came into effect on June 1, 2019, to regulate the growing number of social influencers who are making commercial gains from the recently recognised career. All UAE-based influencers are now required to be registered and to flag paid posts and gifts accordingly to make the advertising of products and services more transparent.

Influencers have three options when obtaining an NMC license – which is now compulsory for all influencers making money, or accepting sizable gifts, while promoting brands and businesses. Category 1 is an individual license, best suited for high-profile individual influencers – they will require a separate business trade license in order to be considered for their NMC license. Category 2 is a partnership license – best suited to small groups of micro-influencers, where they would share a trade license. Category 3 is for influencers who are registered exclusively to official influencer agencies.

The first official Influencer agency to be permitted by the NMC to sign influencers under its umbrella is Motivate-VAMP – a joint partnership between Dubai’s Motivate Media Group and Australian-based Influencer Marketing platform, VAMP. The agency currently has over 400 registered influencers and expects these numbers to grow considerably over the coming months.

“We are delighted to be a part of this initiative and commend the NMC on introducing such comprehensive regulations to support all sectors of the influencer marketing industry in the UAE”, says Chris Capstick, General Manager – Connect, Motivate Media Group. “We have invested a lot of resources into the digital arena and both our partners at VAMP and our on-the-ground team in Dubai are looking forward to the exciting times that lay ahead.”

Vogue Arabia Saudi issue causes a stir

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Controversy has surrounded Vogue Arabia’s first ever Saudi Arabian issue after a social media backlash erupted, stemming from the title’s choice of cover star. The cover features HRH Hayfa bint Abdullah Al Saud, daughter of the late King Abdullah, sitting behind the wheel of a car, but many social voices pointed to the fact it was indeed her father who curbed the rights of women drivers. While the glossy magazine described Her Highness as a trailblazer, others preferred to recognise some of the detained Saudi Arabian activists for their bravery in standing up for women’s rights.

GQ Middle East set to launch in the region

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ITP Media Group partners with Condé Nast International to launch GQ Middle East in September, 2018. The new launch will include a website in Arabic and English, social media platforms, a monthly magazine, and a series of events including the GQ Man of the Year. The new title will feature insightful reports on key regional issues and columns sourced from locally influential men as well as interviews with some of the acclaimed figures from across the fashion, sport and entertainment industry in the region. The digital platform of the magazine will focus heavily on video and be predominantly produced locally with an aim to target males between 28 to 45 years who are ambitious, fashionable, and well educated.

“The Arabian men’s fashion market is very dynamic,” says Karina Dobrotvorskaya, President, Condé Nast New Markets and Editorial Director, Brand Development. “We see a growing appetite for luxury products and a real appreciation of craftsmanship, with huge respect for both heritage and contemporary brands. We believe that ITP Media Group has the experience, vision and enthusiasm to deliver GQ Middle East with its own unique voice across all platforms.”

Ali Akawi, CEO, ITP Media Group added “We are pleased to announce the launch of GQ Middle East – our third brand with our partners, Condé Nast International. GQ is without doubt the most recognisable men’s media brand in the world, and our Middle East version will distinguish itself with quality writers and photographers, exclusive interviews, video production and in-depth analysis and commentary. GQ Middle East will not just report on the latest trends but its editorial team, with proven knowledge of the region, will actually set them.”

Motivate and Vamp form new partnership

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Motivate Publishing has partnered with influencer marketing platform, Vamp as a part of its digital expansion plan across the MENA region. The new partnership will grant Motivate access to the industry’s most effective creative talent through Vamp’s influencer platform. The agreement will also see the Vamp platform ensure that campaigns are designed for maximum impact, using a highly curated selection process that considers brand values, authentic audience reach and creative content.

“One of our strengths as a company is our agility and our ability to capitalise on new media trends, which is at the forefront of our business strategy,” says Ian Fairservice, Managing Partner, Motivate Publishing. “The influencer market provides us with a tremendous opportunity to reach audiences in new arenas and across important territories, and we’re excited to forge this new path with a company that has illustrated a creative alignment with our own values and huge potential for growth.”

Shortlist for Young PR Lions MENA 2018 announced

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PRCA MENA has released the shortlist for this year’s Young PR Lions MENA competition to find the best young PR professional in the region. Eight teams have been shortlisted to win the accolade this year and one of them will be heading to the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity to take part in the international competition from June 17 – 21, 2018. The shortlisted teams include BPG Cohn & Wolfe, Edelman, Golin MENA, Hill + Knowlton Strategies, Q Communications and Weber Shandwick.

On March 19, the shortlisted teams will be asked to deliver a five minute presentation explaining their PR campaign and the winning team will be announced on March 20.

Al-Ittihad partners with The Wall Street Journal

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Abu Dhabi-based Arabic newspaper Al-Ittihad, part of Abu Dhabi Media, has partnered with The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) to expand its readership across the MENA region. The new partnership will grant Al-Ittihad access to additional news stories, features, opinion pieces, videos and infographics to share in English and Arabic across its digital platforms. The collaboration will also see Al-Ittihad subscribers after January 19, 2018 enjoy a one-year subscription to access the digital edition of WSJ.

“This strategic partnership between Abu Dhabi Media and The Wall Street Journal is in line with our efforts to reach a wider audience and to position us as the leading and most diversified media organisation in the UAE and the wider region,” says Ali Bin Tamim, Director General, Abu Dhabi Media.

Jonathan Wright, Global Managing Director, The Wall Street Journal and Dow Jones, adds “Al-Ittihad continues to set the standard for Arabic-language news as the first and oldest newspaper in the region. This partnership enables us to deliver The Wall Street Journal’s world-class business, economic and political news and commentary to Al-Ittihad readers, reaching an even wider audience in the UAE. I look forward to seeing our collaboration with Abu Dhabi Media grow and mature as we move forward together.”

MCG& Founder Justin McGuire to lead expansion in APAC

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Founder and CEO of MCG&, Justin Mcguire is set to lead the group’s expansion in the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region. Founded in 2010, MCG& now consists of four companies across four countries; MCG&Co, which is a specialist recruitment business in the communications, digital and technology sectors globally, Kemistry, which focuses on HR, finance and operations, Hopscotch, a women’s career platform, and the newly launched Ampersand, which is a marketing and talent consultancy providing L&D, search, strategic advisory and M&A services in Dubai, London, Hong Kong and now Singapore.

Due to this growth and further expansion plans in the APAC region including a Shanghai office, McGuire is now leaving Dubai for Singapore.

The Dubai operations, which serve as the headquarters for the group, will continue to be led by Nick Clements, group COO and founder and CEO of Ampersand, Chris Quy, managing director of Ampersand and Rahman Risilia, EMEA managing director for MCG&Co and Kemistry.

“In 18 months, we have built the Asia business to become a significant player in the region. We already have two offices open (Hong Kong and Singapore) with a third set to open in 2019 when we will have team on the ground in Shanghai, and more planned to follow,” he says.

While McGuire’s decision to move makes strategic business sense, it’s not necessarily an easy one. “I arrived in Dubai nine years ago as a single guy who lost his job in the financial crisis and I am leaving Dubai nine years later with a beautiful young family, a successful group of companies and a hunger and passion to continue growing the business. The decision to leave Dubai was not an easy one for many emotional reasons, but having such a solid senior management team in place has made it possible. Strategically, for us, this is a logical decision to make.”

As the company focuses on growth in the APAC region, the MENA region has its own developments with six new hires in the Dubai office in the last six months with recruitment in the tech domain growing strongly. And although growth in the traditional agency-client base has been slow, McGuire expects it to pick up through 2018. “We’re big believers in the region and Dubai will always be our HQ and feel like my home,” he says.

Ampersand and IPA form new partnership

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Marketing and talent consultancy, Ampersand has partnered with the Institute of Practitioners in Advertising (IPA) to provide training courses across the MENA region. The partnership will see IPA offer advertising and marketing training across four main courses including the Foundation Certificate for new business owners, the Eff Test for those involved in effective measurement, the Commercial Certificate to help improve financial acumen and the Advanced Certificate for those with three to six years of industry experience.

“The depth, breath and quality of these training qualifications are globally renowned and we are delighted to now be able to offer IPA’s most important programmes to the MENA region,” says Nick Clements, CEO, Ampersand.

Patrick Mills, Director of Membership and Professional Development, IPA, adds “We are delighted to have partnered with Ampersand to help make the IPA’s industry leading qualifications and courses available in the MENA region. We are delighted to help play a pivotal role in raising industry standards to the benefit of agency and client communities and Ampersand’s knowledge and connections in the MENA region will enable more learners to take advantage of our offering.

Hanover acquires Bell Pottinger Middle East

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Hanover Middle East has signed an agreement to acquire all the assets of Bell Pottinger Middle East. The acquisition will include a name change to Hanover Middle East and will continue to focus on strategic consultancy advice in the financial services, healthcare, technology, media and telecoms sectors as well as maintain its creative agency, The Playbook.

The agreement will also see the appointment of a restructured senior team from both agencies. Jonty Summers will take on the combined business in addition to his role as Managing Director at Hanover. While BPME’s Archie Berens, previously Managing Director will be appointed to the role of Chairman and Amy Piek previously Associate Partner to the role of Director.