PR & Communications News South Africa

An Eclipse for Meier & McEwen

PR agency Meier & McEwen announced yesterday, Tuesday, 11 March 2008, that it had been renamed to Eclipse Public Relations. Apart from rebranding and adding a string of new account gains to its existing portfolio, it has also launched a specialist Entertainment Division, to be headed up by Egoli star Hannes van Wyk.
An Eclipse for Meier & McEwen

The 10-year old agency was acquired by a private investor in late 2007. This was soon followed by the appointment of Gavin Etheridge as business unit manager Cape Town to service the needs of the agency's growing corporate client portfolio.

According to Etheridge, the agency is split into three specialist communication units, namely Consumer, Corporate and Entertainment. “We realised it was time to take advantage of the opportunities that exist in our evolving music, film and television industries. With the appointment of Hannes, we now have the resources to service these industries and develop cross-communication platforms that will also benefit our existing consumer and corporate clients.”

New ownership

Since new ownership in September 2007, Eclipse Public Relations has experienced a revenue growth of 50%, adding new clients to its portfolio that include, among others, Bayer and Gardener Ross Golf & Country Estate (Ernie Els).

The firm also currently represents Falke, Master Builders Association (MBA), Nettex, Steve Madden, The Institute of Municipal Engineering of Southern Africa (IMESA) and Procter & Gamble brands: Gillette, Pantene, Wella, Olay, Body on Tap and Head & Shoulders.

Etheridge explains that balancing the agency's national footprint is the key to sustaining client growth and supporting service levels. “With this as a central focus we are continually strengthening our resources in both Cape Town and Johannesburg.”

For more information, go to www.eclipsepr.co.za.

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