M&C Saatchi upweights leadership on Optus appointing Chiquita King in group head role

M&C Saatchi has significantly upweighted its leadership on Optus with the appointment of Chiquita King (left) to group head.

King joins M&C Saatchi from Leo Burnett where, as group business director, she led Canon, Colonial First State and eBay.

In her homeland of South Africa she rose to group business director at the world-renowned The Jupiter Drawing Room. In eight years at the creative hotshop King was instrumental in the growth and development of blue chip accounts such as Nike, SA Breweries and the Edcon retail group of companies.

She headed to Sydney In 2009, honing her data-driven and digital marketing skills with Lavender to lead the charge on Westpac retail and business banking.

There she was instrumental in the ongoing campaign to reinstate bank managers in every Westpac branch and advertise their personal details, while leading Ikea Family during nearly four years as Group Business Director.

Says Christine Gardner, M&C Saatchi managing partner: “Chiquita’s cross-category track record in business development and relationship marketing that made her a stand-out for the Optus Group Head role.

“Chiquita’s passion for people and creativity is contagious and inspiring. She has a piercingly sharp strategic mind and her strength in CRM makes her the perfect match for Optus given their ‘customer-first’ commitment.”

Says King: “I was so impressed when meeting the management team, our values are aligned and I subscribe to the agency philosophy.

“There are many reasons why M&C Saatchi is such a successful agency group, not the least of which is because it works so hard to walk in its clients’ shoes.

“That it is in its 11th year with Optus is testament to a very special relationship, built on a collaboration and trust that yields rich insights.”

In 2013 M&C Saatchi, along with its branding design consultancy Re, completely rebranded Optus and launched a number of repositioning campaigns in work anointed the best global rebrand of the year by the influential Brand New design forum.

King is the latest in a big talent bolster by M&C Saatchi that includes the appointment of chief strategy officer Justin Graham from Droga5 and group operations director Marc van den Berg from Ogilvy & Mather.