Undertow moves in New (Zealand) direction

Leading consumer PR agency Undertow Media has bolstered its trans-Tasman offer with the announcement of an Auckland office to service its FMCG, tourism, beauty, healthcare, sport and property portfolio.

Celebrating a decade of continued growth and success, the company now boasts 25 staff and a high profile mix of clients from consumer multinationals Jetstar and Kathmandu, to property giants Mirvac and Cbus Property.

The office opened 1 August with a number of existing and new clients keen to ramp up their NZ media presence.  These include Kathmandu, Tupperware and Intrepid Travel.

A new client win for the New Zealand office is fashion powerhouse Witchery, a brand seeing significant success in the Australasian market and this year launching a refreshed, younger and more sophisticated direction.

Heading up the Auckland office (and back in her hometown) is former General Manager of the Consumer division, Greer Bland.  Undertow Media NZ’s growth will be overseen by Group CEO, Jess Nunns, who says the expansion will not stop here.

“Expanding into new markets is a key objective for us in the next three years and this is not limited to traditional public relations.  The next logical step is to grow into the digital space, possibly by partnering with a digital specialist to complement our current offer,” says Nunns.

Bland is delighted – both to be back home and leading Undertow Media’s New Zealand operation.

“When I started to lose some of my kiwi accent, I knew it was time to trade my skinny latte back to a flat white and with it take what I believe to be a very engaged, value-driven and authentic approach to PR back home.  We have multiple clients operating heavily in the New Zealand market so it was a perfect next step for the company,” says Bland.

In the Australian office, Bland has been replaced by Shelley Hammond, who built her thirteen year communications career in PR agencies before moving client side into the media intelligence industry.  Hammond joins General Manager of the Corporate Division, Sally Branson, who started with Undertow Media four months ago, following six years as Media Affairs Manager for the US Embassy.

These developments follow a surge of client wins and new projects for the agency this year, which have included Fairfax Media, Lavazza, five:am organic yoghurt and Adairs.

For more information on Undertow Media visit www.undertowmedia.com , join Facebook or follow the conversation on Twitter @undertowmedia.