by Herman Manson (@marklives) Ogilvy Cape Town MD Gavin Levinsohn is resigning his position at the end of the year to emigrate to Australia, MarkLives has confirmed. The news was announced to Cape Town staff earlier this week.
Levinsohn joined Ogilvy Cape Town as MD in late 2008. Levinsohn is also a member of Ogilvy South Africa Group EXCO and a Board Director of Ogilvy & Mather South Africa. According to Ogilvy & Mather South Africa Group Marketing Director Lauren Woolf a succession plan is in place, details of which has not yet been released. It has not yet been decided if Levinsohn is leaving the group as a whole or only his position as MD in Cape Town, according to Woolf.
In a statement released to MarkLives the company says that “Ogilvy & Mather Cape Town Managing Director Gavin Levinsohn is moving to Australia at the end of 2013 for personal reasons after five very successful years at the helm of the agency. During Levinsohn’s time as MD, Ogilvy & Mather Cape Town has become the country’s top-ranked creative agency and has transformed itself into a genuine digitally-led, integrated agency.”
In the same statement Ogilvy & Mather SA CEO Abey Mokgwatsane said that he was “sorry to be losing a leader of Gavin’s undeniable calibre but the agency already has a robust succession plan in place and would be announcing a new management structure shortly.”
Levinsohn started his career at The Jupiter Drawing Room Cape Town as a Junior Account Executive and worked his way up to become Client Service Director. In 2006 he became MD and co-founder of agency singh&sons before joining Ogilvy Cape Town in late 2008.
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Great pity. Our industry and country loses another good leader with real talent.
Easily one of the best gentleman I have ever had the pleasure of working with.
He is/was the engine that drove Ogilvy CT. A big loss…