JWT launches shopper marketing arm

JWT and Always, China-based field and activation company, have together launched JWT Always, a full-service shopper, retail marketing and consumer activation division of JWT Singapore.JWT Always will sit within JWT Singapore’s office. The unit will  offer shopper marketing and retail audit, activation strategy, road show/event and other field marketing services, all of which are designed to drive bottom-line results for brands.JWT also appointed Sanjiv Sharma as managing director of JWT Always, and Anand Kumar as general manager. Both Sharma and Kumar were part of a regional shopper and field marketing agency before joining JWT Always.Both Sharma (pictured right) and Anand Kumar (pictured centre) will report to Frank Bauer (pictured left), CEO of JWT Singapore.Always, which is owned by JWT, works for a tier-one list of international clients including Unilever, Ferrero, Nokia, J&J, Pfizer, Intel, Microsoft and VISA, in China. Always and JWT set up operations in Taiwan in May, and will extend services in other Southeast Asian markets through the operation in Singapore.“The retail environment is the final front of a brand’s strategic battle with their competitors, and you can imagine how cluttered that can appear to a shopper. The brand that best understands that dynamic and deploys the most novel, cut-through and simple solution wins,” said Sharma."We face amazing growth of an affluent and very informed, new consumer base and our multinational clients operating in Singapore and across Southeast Asia want strong brand ideas and consistent, integrated engagement solutions in one shop,” Bauer said.Cai Hua, founder and chairman of Always added that Singapore is a sophisticated and highly competitive market and the services provided by the agency will “give brands a critical edge in that last mile – the point of purchase.”