MediaCorp and Crème Simon enter media-for-equity partnership

MediaCorp and Crème Simon Singapore have entered an agreement in which the Singapore media company will take a stake in the French skincare company in exchange for advertising products and services.This is the first time that MediaCorp is entering a media-for-equity partnership, an alternative investment model to the more conventional cash investments and seed funding that the company has undertaken to grow its business inorganically.Over a one-year period, MediaCorp will provide Crème Simon Singapore with advertising space and airtime across a range of print, online, TV, radio and out-of-home platforms. These include Channel 8, LOVE 97.2 and women’s magazines Elle and Style.With its media entitlements, Crème Simon Singapore will amplify its marketing efforts to promote its parabens-free skincare formulations, specially developed for different climate conditions. Currently, Crème Simon’s Asia Pacific operations include stores in Hong Kong, South Korea, Indonesia and Australia and will soon expand to Thailand and Malaysia.“Crème Simon is one of the pioneering skincare brands in France, spanning over 155 years of celebrated legacy, but we’re just taking our first steps in Singapore,” Felicia Soh, managing director, Crème Simon said. “We will benefit greatly from this partnership which gives us an immediate means to make Crème Simon a household name here. We chose MediaCorp because of its complete range of media properties and its deep understanding of its customer segments, including women.”Guillaume Sachet, MediaCorp’s head of strategic planning said, “Media-for-equity investments are an effective way for MediaCorp to optimise advertising inventory and participate in entrepreneurial ventures with potentially strong returns. Instead of investing money, we’re investing advertising media. Crème Simon, an exciting brand that offers clear value for both its customers and shareholders, is an ideal partner for our first such investment. With our media injection, people in Singapore will be seeing and hearing a lot more of Crème Simon.”Marketing has reached out to MediaCorp on more information on the partnership.In recent years, MediaCorp has been accelerating its efforts to expand its portfolio of high-growth companies. In July, the company announced the selection of eight start-ups for its Mediapreneur incubator programme which nurtures high-potential technology companies for the media industry.