Rebranding by MSL in Malaysia and Indonesia Highlights Commitment to Fast-Growing Region
MSL, in conjunction with Publicis One, announced the expansion of the MSL brand to Malaysia and Indonesia with the renaming of existing Publicis-owned PR units as MSL.
The new units join the company‘s other offices in the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam in Southeast Asia, giving it the most complete and consistent network of wholly-owned and branded PR agencies in the region.
The company’s PR operations in Malaysia and Indonesia are both part of Publicis One, the global communications enterprise that unites all of Publicis Groupe agency brands’ capabilities and expertise under one roof in a number of markets around the world.
In Malaysia, effective today, Leo Burnett / Arc PR Worldwide has rebranded as MSL. The unit, with more than 20 professionals, half of whom are social media experts, is led by Director of PR Sharmila Ramanath who reports to Kien Eng Tan, CEO of Publicis One Malaysia.
The broad PR offering includes corporate and crisis communications, influencer marketing, digital/social media strategy and execution, internal communications, media relations, media training and advocacy.
Alibaba Group, Samsung, Dutch Lady, Alcon, and YTL Land & Development are amongst the operation’s key clients.
“With the creative heritage of Leo Burnett, the Arc PR team has been transforming to provide more integrated solutions to deliver positive impact on our clients’ business.
“Now powered by MSL, an award-winning industry leader in Asia, we are better positioned as an integrated communication powerhouse with all Publicis Groupe agencies together providing end-to-end, PR advisory and interdependent solutions to our clients,” said Kien Eng Tan.
In Indonesia, Leo PR will rebrand to MSL on 3 May. Industry veteran Eugene Laksono, Head of Public Relations, leads the PR unit in Jakarta, reporting to Brian Capel, CEO of Publicis One in Indonesia.
The company has a dozen staff members in Indonesia conducting consumer marketing, corporate reputation management, issues and crisis communications, and social activation work for the Hong Kong Tourism Board, Samsung, Lixil Water Technology, KraftHeinz ABC and L’Oreal, amongst others.
“As the eighth agency brand under the Publicis One platform in Indonesia, the company brings new depth to the comprehensive service offering with state-of-the-art global tools such as crisis simulation training, influencer and content creation and amplification, and MSL thought leadership initiatives, all of which will help us build influence and deliver impact for our clients,” said Brian Capel.
As part of the Publicis Groupe structural transformation announced in late 2015, the PR operations in many countries have been integrated into other local Publicis operations.
By also tying these PR capabilities to the company, the only global PR network in Publicis Groupe, it is easier for local clients to tap into its vast global resources and access to the broader footprint.
“In this sense, we have simplified the access of our clients to the resources they need through local integration and to all we have to offer as a top-notch global PR network,” said Guillaume Herbette, Global CEO, MSL.
In the last two years, the company has converted existing operations around the world from Arc Worldwide and Leo Burnett to the MSL brand, including in Sri Lanka (January 2016), the Philippines (June 2016), Thailand (December 2016), Egypt, Lebanon, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and UAE in the Middle East (September 2016) and the Czech Republic (November 2017).
