Tag: Stefano Zunino

  • WPP acquires e-commerce agency Corebiz

    WPP acquires e-commerce agency Corebiz

    Mumbai: WPP has announced that it is acquiring Corebiz, a Latin American e-commerce agency specialising in VTEX implementation. It is one of the largest enterprise digital commerce platforms in the region. 

    Founded in 2013, Corebiz employs over 600 people across Latin America, with the majority of its headcount based in its São Paulo and Franca offices in Brazil. The Brazilian operations of the company will join the VMLY&R COMMERCE global network, with further regional outposts of the business coming onboard over the course of the coming year. 

    Corebiz counts companies such as Whirlpool, Casino Group, Walmart, Carrefour, Decathlon and Estée Lauder amongst its clients. It specialises in a range of e-commerce digital solutions covering three key pillars: acquisition, from creating visuals for digital campaigns to driving targeted SEO; conversion, including CRO and full stack development; and loyalty, spanning from CRM system implementation to managing consumer data and running targeted promotional campaigns. As an implementation specialist of VTEX, the agency helps clients reduce time-to-market, reach audiences across multiple channels, and uncover new growth areas in Latin America and beyond.

    WPP said that this acquisition reflects its ongoing investment in strengthening its commerce offer for clients as consumer needs continue to change. It is aligned with WPP’s accelerated growth strategy, building on existing capabilities in the areas of commerce and technology. WPP added that it is ranked as a leader in Forrester’s global Commerce Services Wave, and already manages more than $40 billion of direct and $20 billion of marketplace GMV for clients and employs 13,500 commerce specialists across its agencies.

    WPP in Brazil country manager Stefano Zunino said, “Companies both in Latin America and around the world are looking to grow their e-commerce capabilities, having seen over the last two and a half years the impact that strong digital commerce strategies can have on business growth. Corebiz’s market-leading knowledge of enterprise commerce platforms such as VTEX will further strengthen our commerce expertise. I look forward to welcoming the Corebiz team as we expand our offer to clients here in Brazil and beyond.”

    VMLY&R COMMERCE global CEO Beth Ann Kaminkow said, “Bolstering our creative commerce offering to drive conversion every day for our clients is an essential ingredient to creating connected brands. The team at Corebiz are not only experts in this field, but also share our philosophy for building a thriving company culture alongside business growth. We’re thrilled to get our collaboration underway across our client base.”

    Corebiz founders and co-CEOs Felipe Macedo and Renan Mota said, “Over the last few years, we have actively participated in the acceleration of the ecommerce market in Latin America. Now, our goal is to take this expertise to the rest of the world. This will only be enhanced by joining WPP and the VMLY & R COMMERCE network, and we are excited to strengthen ecommerce enablement for VMLY & R COMMERCE’s global clients.”

  • JWT & Group SJR launch content marketing unit – Colloquial

    JWT & Group SJR launch content marketing unit – Colloquial

    MUMBAI: J. Walter Thompson and Group SJR, a unit of Hill+Knowlton Strategies have joined hands to launch a content marketing unit called Colloquial.

     

    The joint venture brings together the creative talent and strategic rigor of J. Walter Thompson with the publishing and audience development experience of Group SJR.

     

    Colloquial will build publishing environments for brands, specializing in content that builds loyalty and audience over time – short articles, infographics and visual stories for brands that are quickly conceived, made and shared. It is a content marketing unit that shows brands how to act like publishers and benefit from an always-on digital narrative, helping them build passionate and monetizable communities.

     

    Colloquial will embody the intersection of advertising, publishing and public relations, with storytelling and creativity at its core. The new unit will share locations and draw on talent from J. Walter Thompson in key global markets including Australia, Brazil, Mexico, the United Kingdom and the United States.

     

    “The launch of Colloquial is another piece of our strategy to continue building on J. Walter Thompson Company’s many assets to create solutions that build enduring and winning brands, while driving business growth for our clients. Content is the new currency. Colloquial will deliver both authentic narratives and the creative visual storytelling that brands are demanding and consumers want,” said J. Walter Thompson Company global chairman and CEO Gustavo Martinez.

     

    Group SJR managing partner Alexander Jutkowitz will serve as Colloquial’s CEO.

    “Successful brands innovate. Not only is that what J. Walter Thompson and Group SJR are doing with the creation of Colloquial, but it’s what we’re going to do for our clients — ensuring they have the ability to continuously reach targeted, ‘always on’ audiences with an array of engaging, high quality content that moves them,” said Jutkowitz.

     

    In addition to Jutkowitz as CEO, Colloquial will be led by William (Billy) Sind as editorial lead; Jinal Shah as strategy lead; and Gillian Melrose as marketing lead.

     

    “With the creative and strategic rigor of J. Walter Thompson, the creation of our digital agency network Mirum and now the launch of Colloquial, the J. Walter Thompson Company offers the full spectrum of content marketing to clients. We’re fortunate to have such great talent from across the advertising, public relations and publishing spaces, and know they’ll make a formidable team,” said J. Walter Thompson Company head of digital worldwide Stefano Zunino.