Two more of Ace Saatchi & Saatchi’s old guard are stepping down, as CEO and Vice Chairman Matt Seddon announces the appointment of two new officials.
Edg Samson joins the agency in October from Ogilvy & Mather to lead the agency’s prestigious Mead Johnson account, replacing Beng Conferido who will be leaving the agency after 14 years. Edg is known for his ability to build strong client relationships and driving breakthrough creative work.
At Ace Saatchi, he will be overseeing the entire Mead Johnson portfolio including Lactum, Alacta, Sustagen and Enfa.
Edg started his career at Jimenez D’Arcy (now Publicis Jimenez Basic), before moving on to BBDO Guerrero Ortega and Ogilvy & Mather where he was the Group Account Director.
< width="200" height="133" align="right" alt="" src=" carmen antunez. " />Carmen Antunez also joins the agency in October as Head of Strategic Planning, replacing industry veteran Jing Villacorta who is moving on to explore a new opportunity. Carmen began her career in strategic planning eight years ago and will lead the planning team at Ace Saatchi on clients including Mead Johnson, Procter & Gamble, PLDT, Kraft, & Roche.
Carmen’s introduction to the ad world began in Account Management at Ace Saatchi in 1992. She also worked with Lowe, where she transitioned into planning. Most recently, she was with Publicis Jimenez Basic as Planning Director.
Both Samson and Antunez will report directly to Seddon, who says:
“It’s always a shame when stalwarts of the agency move on after many years and I would like to publicly acknowledge the contribution Jing and Beng have made at Ace Saatchi over the years. I am however extremely pleased to announce the arrival of Carmen and Edg to take their places and although they have big shoes to fill I am confident that they are the right choices to take Ace Saatchi to the next level. I have tried to hire both Edg and Carmen a number of times previously and until now had failed miserably so on a personal note it’s reassuring to know that I still have the ability to convince the industry’s finest to join us!”
When Seddon declared Ace Saatchi & Saatchi would be Agency of the Year by 2010, few thought it to be little more than bravado. Now, clearly, the man intends to make good on his threat.
