by Herman Manson (@marklives) MetropolitanRepublic has issued a statement announcing the closure of its Cape Town office. “In a refocusing of its business interests following client demand and resultant opportunities, integrated creative advertising agency MetropolitanRepublic has decided to close its Cape Town branch and open additional branches in new markets on the African continent,” reads the announcement.
Tag archives: closure
Grey closes Joburg agency, looks to buy another
by Herman Manson (@marklives) Grey Group, a WPP agency network, has closed its Johannesburg agency. No reason was given for the decision and the network has so far failed to clarify what happened with staff or clients. It also would not respond to an allegation in Business Day that the CEO of the agency, Derek Shorkey, had already left the country by the time news of the closure became public. Shorkey is listed as being in London on his Linkedin profile, which still lists him as CEO of the South African operation.
Owen Dougherty, Chief Communications Officer at Grey Group, says the network will regroup in South Africa and either acquire or build a new integrated agency, describing it as a key market.
“Grey is committed to Africa and has been increasing its footprint on the continent in recent years to meet rising demand from multinational and local clients,” reads a statement released by Grey Group. “Grey today is working across West and East Africa with a presence in 11 markets including Nigeria and Kenya.”
After 20 years, SA ad industry sees demise of last print trade magazine
by Louise Marsland’s (@Louise_Marsland) It was with sadness that I learnt today that Media24 has closed down leading business-to-business magazine, AdVantage.
The 20-year-old print brand, started by legendary adman and editor, John Farquhar, pushed the boundaries in both content and advertising advantageover the years, winning multiple awards.
The last issue (dated July 2013), went to print today and the June cover, which we display here, has been entered by Ogilvy into the Loeries.
When I was the editor, we redesigned and won awards for writing, design, covers and supplements two years in a row, including the Media24 internal awards for best B2B publication.
Outgoing editor, Danette Breitenbach, said she was “devastated” about the closure of the magazine.
“It is a fabulous product in a wonderful industry and it is very sad for all of us and such a pity it is closing after a legacy of 20 years.”
Media24 will also be closing and restructuring some of the medical titles in its B2B division and a number of staffers have been retrenched.
Avusa to discontinue SoccerLife 442, remains committed to consumer market
Avusa Magazines is closing down SoccerLife 442, the soccer lifestyle title it has been publishing for the past seven years. News of the closure comes in a memo from Avusa Magazines GM Justice Malala to staff that was leaked to Bizcommunity.com. The February 2011 issue, currently in the process of going out on newsstands across the country, will be the final one.