Marketing Talent

Newly formed VML announces its South African leadership team

By our African Marketing Confederation News Team | 2024

Recent global merger of agencies Wunderman Thompson and VMLY&R creates a new SA business and leadership team.

By our African Marketing Confederation News Team.

Jarred Cinman has been named as CEO of VML South Africa. Working alongside Cinman will be Diane Wilson who has been named as VML’s Chief Operations Officer.

Diane Wilson (left), Jarred Cinman and Tebogo Skwambane. Photo: VML

A leader in South Africa’s agency landscape for three decades, Cinman has been at the forefront of digital evolution in the industry, having started and led South Africa’s first digital agency in the 1990s.

Wilson joined shortly thereafter, and their 27-year partnership as a leadership team has seen them co-found and lead Cambrient and then Native, which ultimately became VMLY&R South Africa. They have been co-CEOs of this business for the past five years.

Under Wilson and Cinman’s leadership, VMLY&R South Africa won heavy-hitting accounts, such as Vodacom, and numerous awards, both locally and internationally – including two silver Effie Awards, Seven Smarties Awards (six of them gold), and Agency of the Year at the New Generation Awards in 2023, as well as three Effie Awards, plus four Cannes Lions Awards in 2022.

Merger of Wunderman Thompson and VMLY&R

In October last year WPP announced a major evolution in its offering to clients with the global merger of Wunderman Thompson and VMLY&R. Operational from 1 January 2024, the combined entity, known as VML, will be the industry’s largest creative company and has entered the South African market with offices in Johannesburg, Durban and Cape Town.

VML South Africa’s clients include leading brands such as Vodacom, Standard Bank, BMW, Nestlé, Unilever, Hollard, Nando’s, and SA Tourism.

Cinman will report to Ewen Sturgeon, CEO of VML in the EMEA region. On the appointment, Sturgeon commented, “I am absolutely delighted that Jarred and Di will be leading the VML brand in South Africa. Their client-centric focus, inclusive leadership style and forward-thinking approach to innovation and technology will ensure we create a thriving business and that our clients are offered the very best across brand experience, customer experience and commerce.”

Fran Luckin becomes Chief Creative Officer, as announced at the end of last year. Tebogo Skwambane, who also holds the position of WPP Country Manager for South Africa, is announced as Executive Chairperson.

Pre-conference masterclass discusses taking African brands to the world

Participants challenged to identify, articulate and commercialise the cultural assets that make their brand ready for a global audience.

Three people stand side by side in front of a sports direct backdrop the woman in the middle holds a blue and orange 'sports direct' sign

Africa’s first Sports Direct retail store opens its doors in Nairobi

Second outlet planned for Nairobi before year end, with Nigeria, South Africa and Morocco said to be future target markets.

Person wearing a beige sweater holds a phone with a translucent search bar reading 'search' and microphonecamera icons in the foreground

Search is fragmenting – credibility and trust create the new visibility

Online search behaviour has changed significantly with the rise of AI. How can African brands adapt to this new marketing landscape?

Person shopping at a deli counter holding an orange shopping basket in a cheese section of a supermarket

The move toward future-ready food packaging where materials meet AI

Researchers propose a framework for packaging that senses, learns and acts – making packaging an active, AI-powered tool against food waste.

Conference stage with a woman in a patterned dress speaking to an audience large screens display '' logos and banners for a marketers conference with 'institute of marketing in malawi' branding on stage panels and backdrop

Malawi’s marketers urged to put trust at the heart of the profession

Country needs marketers to build recognition and consumer trust around Malawian products and national brand, says Deputy Minister.

Lingerie brand creates street-stopping advertising in Manhattan

Fashion brand suspends giant lingerie high above the city’s streets, using shadows to create a moving billboard for pedestrians and motorists.

We know AI influencers aren’t real – so why do we trust them?

Researchers describe AI influencers as having a ‘dual identity’. Consumers evaluate both ‘person’ and ‘technology’ identities at once.

Hotel receptionist assisting a guest at the check in counter with a gray suitcase nearby behind the desk

Why trust has become a critical asset for hotel industry marketers

Reputation and trust, once modest influences on hotel choice, have become some of the strongest predictors of patronage, study finds.

Three people in formal attire pose for a photo at an awards event a woman in a pink dress holds a trophy while two men in suits stand beside her against a gold confetti backdrop

FNB bank’s eBucks programme dominates the 2026 SA loyalty awards

South African brands are increasingly setting the global benchmark for customer loyalty strategies, organisers say.

Portrait of a man with short black hair and a beard wearing a black button down shirt against a light gray background

Zambia’s strongest creative ideas are emerging from local truths

Global influences among younger consumers are still present, but they are being filtered through a distinctly Zambian lens.

Yellow humanoid robot at a bakery counter inspecting a display of donuts on display in front of glass cases

Consumers have doubts about products when they’re designed by AI

Researchers find that lack of perceived ‘genuine care’ is the mechanism connecting AI involvement to lower trust ratings.