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Tuesday, 21 Jun 2011


Advertising creatives at work. Image by Cheil.

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Advertising creatives at work. Image by Cheil.

Advertising creatives at work. Image by Cheil.

Cheil Worldwide advertising

Having acquired a 49 per cent stake in Beattie McGuinness Bungay at the end of 2008, South Korean advertising agency Cheil Worldwide has since supported the London-based advertising agency in growing its global business.

Established in 1973, Cheil Worldwide Inc is a global marketing and commu¬nications company headquartered in Seoul, South Korea. Cheil has over 1,500 employees, based across 36 offices in 29 countries.

Cheil started out as an in-house agency for Samsung and its affiliates. Over the last 35 years, the company has developed beyond its flagship client to the point that now over 50 per cent of its domestic business comes from other clients.

“In 2007, Cheil made a new strategic decision,” says Bruce Haines, Global President and COO for Cheil. “We wanted to actively look beyond our in-house work with Samsung and work with new global clients and partners. Our vision is to be ranked in the Top 10 global communications groups by 2015.”

Finding a suitable partner

In order to pursue these ambitions, Cheil needed to appoint a senior executive whose role would be crucial to driving the business forward. It appointed Bruce Haines.

As the former CEO of advertising agency Leo Burnett, Bruce had plentyof advertising experience. He is a well-known and respected global advertising professional, having overseen the successful merger of Leo Burnett with D’Arcy, and served as the president of the UK’s communications industry trade association, the Institute of Practitioners in Advertising.

“At the time I joined Cheil, it was looking to find other highly ambitious companies to work with,” says Bruce. “Part of my role is to find opportunities to grow the international business and find suitable partners who match our determination and drive. As I have worked in London for many years, I know that the UK’s creative industry is exceptionally creative and eclectic. It was an obvious market choice when looking for a business partner.”

Sealing the deal

Cheil was looking at a number of agencies to do business with. The company short-listed four from the US and the UK. One of these was Beattie McGuinness Bungay (BMB), a London-based advertising agency. Founded in 2005 by Trevor Beattie, Andrew McGuinness and Bill Bungay, in 2008 BMB brought in £65 million worth of new client business, continued its growth during the global turndown of 2009 and within the last year has added more new clients which include The Independent newspaper, Pretty Polly and Yorkshire Tea.