The Drum Awards for Marketing - Extended Deadline

-d -h -min -sec

Big signing for RBH as Halley heads to Brum

Author

By The Drum Team, Editorial

October 31, 2005 | 3 min read

Rees Bradley Hepburn has appointed Euro RSCG brand director, Ian Halley to join its management team. Halley, who has worked at J Walter Thompson, Ogilvy & Mather, CDP and McCann-Erickson, has been brought in to help the agency’s growth and development for the future.

Halley has a raft of big brand experience, handling major accounts such as Bacardi Martini, L’Oreal, Going Places, Ford, Argos and Duracell. Discussing his decision to leave the London agency scene after 25 years, Halley commented: “I was looking for an opportunity to make a personal contribution to an agency. I wanted to be involved in the development of the business rather than just looking after clients, which is something that I’ve not really been able to do in my previous roles.”

Halley joined Euro RSCG in 2004 and has been responsible for the LG Electronics, TravelLodge and News of the World accounts. Commenting on why he opted to look north of London, he stated: “I decided to look outside of London because agencies inside are having a difficult time. Unless you’re a large agency, it’s very difficult to offer good value quality service because the cost of running an agency in London is so high.

“There are some very good agencies offering a similar service to that in London but are doing so at a fraction of the cost. If you’re a national client then these are prices that make sense. It’s a trend that’s only going to continue.”

While Halley’s job title has not yet been confirmed, he is expected to fulfil a managing partner role at RBH, which has been looking for someone of Halley’s experience for the last few months.

“About a year ago I came across four agencies that I wanted to know more about, and RBH was one of them,” Halley stated, explaining his reason for accepting RBH’s offer.

“I was very impressed with their client list, their parentage in the fact that after 10 years in business it’s still privately owned by the three founders, and the genuine commitment from them for the next 10 years. They have exciting plans that appealed to me.”

Halley’s initial remit will include sitting down with the other members of the management team to map out the long-term plans for the agency, however, he is also expecting to have a prominent role with the agency’s clients.

He added: “I expect I will still be looking after clients and I very much look forward to doing that. My experience with Ford, for example, is a perfect match for RBH’s clients, such as Land Rover, Jaguar and Aston Martin.”

Trending

Industry insights

View all
Add your own content +