Eugene Cheong vacates creative chief role at DDB Asia

Eugene Cheong will be vacating his role of chief creative officer at DDB Asia. He joined the firm in 2021, and worked alongside Asia CEO David Tang to support its offices in China, Hong Kong, Seoul and Singapore on global and big local brands growing across Asia. During his appointment, Tang said it is an exhilarating time for DDB in Asia, and the agency as gearing up on creative firepower to drive really effective work for clients.

In a statement to MARKETING-INTERACTIVE, Chong said, “ The rumours are true. I’m leaving DDB Asia. We did our darnedest to build the business, putting in a new pitch every 5.2 weeks. Kudos to David Tang, Thomas Yang and all the troops at DDB.”

He described his experience at the agency as “flying the plane while building it”,  while counting on the Chinese economy to keep growing. “But for the first time in 50 years, the Chinese economy stuttered, and we found ourselves high in the air without forward momentum. It was like Wiley E. Coyote falling off a cliff. I'm taking a much-needed sabbatical. Traveling, seeing my kids, and putting miles on my Pinarello F. Living life slooooow,” he added.

Cheong spent a decade as Ogilvy's APAC creative chief before leaving in 2019. Over 30 years in the industry, Cheong has worked with some of the biggest brands in the world, including Coca-Cola, Guinness, Singtel, Huawei, SC Johnson and Shangri-La Hotels. 

Subsequently, Cheong founded his own agency named e earlier which allied with creative independent Blak Labs to offer creative, tech, media and production. E has worked with brands including Shangri-La Hotels & Resorts, Singapore National Eye Centre, and Natura Malaysia.

Related articles:
Former Ogilvy APAC creative chief Eugene Cheong starts up independent agency
Creative Catch-Up: Ogilvy’s Eugene Cheong
Ogilvy’s Eugene Cheong exits agency