FWD Insurance appoints Céline Sciortino as global VP of brand and marketing 

FWD Insurance has appointed Céline Weltmann Sciortino as global vice president of brand and marketing. According to her LinkedIn, prior to this position, she was chief marketing officer at WORMS Safety, a global alliance of specialist companies in specific product categories with expert knowledge of regulatory compliance, safety and quality. With over 20 years of experience, Sciortino has worked on driving growth, engagement and sales at some of the world's leading brands and technology companies.  

Prior to WORMS Safety, Sciortino (pictured) joined APM Monaca as head of global marketing in April 2020, where she described her scope of duty including conducting annual marketing plan, budget planning and allocation by market and channel. She was also responsible for digital marketing activation across all ecosystems and markets, including paid, performance and social; ATL media buying; PR and BTL activities; trade marketing; marketing analytics and effectiveness (ROI and KPI), according to her LinkedIn. On her LinkedIn, Sciortino also said that she is passionate about people as well as building happy and high performing teams and assisting people in creating opportunities for themselves.

Meanwhile, in April this year, FWD Insurance also promoted Gavin Lai to vice president, brand and marketing. According to his LinkedIn, prior to this position, he was assistant vice president, brand and marketing  He joined the company in April 2017 as group product propositions director. In this position, he was responsible for various projects to develop innovative products, services, and sales tools to enhance protection and investment sales. He also drove changes in the way that the company developed products and communicated with customers.

Lai positions himself as an experienced insurance executive with keen analytical, strategic, and interpersonal skills. "I enjoy working in roles with high levels of responsibility and challenge. I believe that the right mindset, empowering leadership, and effective teamwork are the keys to delivering results in uncertain conditions," he said. Lai boasts experience in other insurance companies too. For example, he worked for Reinsurance Group of America as director of regional accounts and marketing services for Asia from December 2015 and March 2017.

He also worked for Australian life insurer TAL Life, where his last position was head of product - group life. He led a specialist team of group life product management professionals and was responsible for delivering product services and supporting TAL’s wholesale clients, comprising corporations, master trusts and industry funds.

In 2021, FWD Insurance launched several campaigns in Hong Kong. It launched a pop-up store at Tsim Sha Tsui as part of a campaign celebrating a new protection plan and a digital platform, in addition to a video featuring boyband MIRROR's members Ian Chan and Jer Lau, as well as singer Gin Lee.

The “Treasurance” shop displayed a wide variety of insurance solutions as daily necessities, showcasing how insurance is incorporated into people's daily lives. Divided into four zones, namely “Health”, “Life”, “Living” and “Travel”, the shop featured popular insurance products welcomed by these celebrity shopkeepers. The pop-up store also offered visitors limited-time offers, a special selfie area and interactive activities, allowing visitors to explore insurance protection options offered by FWD Insurance for them to better plan for their future.

FWD Insurance’s "Keep Going, Celebrate Living" campaign also won three gold awards in the categories of Best COVID-19 Response, Best Influencer Strategy and Best Storytelling Strategy, and one silver award for the Best Use of Content category at MARKETING-INTERACTIVE’S PR Awards. The campaign’s success was built one FWD’s brand promise to celebrate living, and its effort to encourage and inspire Hong Kong people during the pandemic.

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