NEW NATIONAL FORUM FOR CHINA'S MARKETING PROFESSIONALS
Inaugural meeting of Marketing Group of China held in Shanghai
Shanghai – October 23, 2008. A new national forum for marketing professionals, the Marketing Group of China (MGOC), has been launched, supported by co-founders Hill & Knowlton and Kantar. The group aims to bring together the most influential marketers from Chinese and multinational companies and create a unique forum to share insights, experience and best practice.
The Group held its inaugural meeting in Shanghai on October 22, and welcomed Darren Marshall, Asia Pacific Marketing Head of The Coca-Cola Company, as its keynote speaker. He was joined for a lively panel discussion with top marketers moderated by former CNN anchor Lorraine Hahn. The discussion took place in front of an audience of around 100 senior marketers from some of the top companies operating in China. The panelists included, Yan Xu, President of Sales & Marketing of the Tsingtao Brewery Company Limited, Johnson Lam, CEO of Tata Consultancy Services in China, and Chen Junyi, General Manager, Brand Management of Inner Mongolia Yili Industrial Group Co., Ltd
"Despite being an emerging global marketing powerhouse for this century, China has lacked a top-level national forum for senior marketing professionals," said Tony Burgess-Webb, CMO of Hill & Knowlton, a leading international communications consultancy. "The Marketing Group of China sets out to provide high-level networking opportunities and provide a platform for top marketers to share experiences."
He added, "I think the group got off to a great start and I believe everyone who attended took away precious marketing insights and valuable new contacts in the industry. The MGOC will be a member-driven group so we hope that individuals will step forward to contribute to its organization and future direction."
Co-founder of the MGOC is leading research and consultancy firm the Kantar Group. "China's economic ascent has presented many new exciting and challenging marketing opportunities in China and we believe the creation of this group will allow experts to pool their cumulative knowledge together to benefit China's entire marketing industry", said Magdalene Wong, CEO of Oracle Added Value, a Kantar company.
About Hill & Knowlton
Established in China for 24 years, Hill & Knowlton, Inc. is a leading international communications consultancy, providing services to local, multinational and global clients. The firm is headquartered in New York, with 73 offices in 41 countries, as well as an extensive associate network. The agency is part of WPP, one of the world's largest communications services groups. For further information about Hill & Knowlton, please visit www.hillandknowlton.com
About Kantar
The Kantar Group is one of the world's largest research, insight and consultancy networks. It has 160 offices, in over 70 countries worldwide. Our major operating companies in China are Millward Brown, Research International, Oracle Added Value and Glendinning. On both an individual and collaborative basis, we help clients make better decisions through deeper understanding of their markets, their brands and their customers. Simply put, we help clients find better ways to answer business questions.
