Wunderman Thompson relocates Indonesia CEO to lead Canada branch

Vaishali Sarkar, Wunderman Thompson Indonesia's CEO, will be moving to Canada where she will take on the role of President of Wunderman Thompson Canada, according to a statement by the agency. 

Sarkar joined Wunderman Thompson Indonesia in 2020 and has since led the team through the JWT, Wunderman and Mirum merger. as well as though the pandemic where she led the agency remotely for two years. 

During that time, she landed and led Danone Aqua, Indonesia's biggest water brand, followed by a series of New Business Wins including Perfetti Van Melle, Nestle’s KitKat and Purina.

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“I absolutely love the Wunderman Thompson culture, and the power of our network gives me the opportunity to draw on my experience here in Indonesia to another important market – Canada. Wunderman Thompson North America’s creative reputation is strong, and some amazing work is originating in Canada. I look forward to helping our clients and talent in Canada expand and grow to be the best they can be,” said Sarkar about her move. 

In her new role, Sarkar will lead the Toronto and Montreal offices, with clients including HSBC, Microsoft and automotive brands.

“Sarkaris a proven leader in our network who has been at home at WPP agencies for the majority of her career and is deeply familiar with many of the same brands we share as clients. She’s known to be an open leader with a heart for her team and a mind for setting up agencies and clients for success,” said Audrey Melofchik, the CEO of Wunderman Thompson North America. 

Sarkar brought to the agency over 30 years of experience at top agencies such as Ogilvy where she grew its offerings and delivered marketing solutions across all disciplines and emerging technologies for brands including American Express, Seagram, Unilever, Nestle, UNICEF, and Johnson & Johnson. 

Sarkaris also served as CEO of BBDO Indonesia, attracting and retaining some of the best talent for the agency to build a strong leadership team across account management, strategic planning, and creative.

Sarkar's new role as president will be effective come June this year and her Indonesia successor will be revealed by the agency in due course. 

The news comes shortly after it was revealed that Wunderman Thompson's executive director of strategic initiatives across the APAC region, Tarun Rai, will be retiring after 30 years in the ad industry, according to the agency in a statement. 

Rai joined Wunderman Thompson in 1988 as an account executive and quickly rose through the ranks to become managing partner at global ad agency J. Walter Thompson (JWT) which merged with Wunderman in 2018 to form Wunderman Thompson. 

After leading the merger between Wunderman and JWT, Rai was appointed chairman and Group CEO for South Asia and began to help steer the organisation through the pandemic.

He was then appointed executive director of strategic initiatives across the APAC region in 2022.

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