Antony Young Named CEO of Mindshare N.A.

As of October 1 Antony Young will take over as CEO of WPP’s Mindshare North America. He is currently CEO of Optimedia, a U.S. subsidiary of the French advertising giant Publicis.

During his 15 years with ZenithOptimedia arm of the Publicis Groupe Young has proven his adeptness in making full use of global resources to advantage in each of his assignments. As CEO of the Asia Network he helped launch and oversaw Zenith China. Before that, as Asia regional media director for Saatchi & Saatchi, Young headed up media-planning for Procter & Gamble’s Asia business. In mid-2006 he left his role as CEO of ZenithOptimedia U.K. to assume presidency of the U.S.-based Optimedia where he successfully held on to the $480 million Sanofi Aventis account in a review. He also attracted major new accounts like Orbitz to post an impressive $40 million in U.S. revenues for 2010.

At Mindshare Young will have large shoes to fill. Young will replace Phil Cowdell who will move into a newly created position of chairman of North America to focus on expanding the agency’s North American business. Coldwell led Mindshare to solid growth since taking over in 2009. In 2010 Mindshare actually managed a bigger year-over-year revenue boost in the U.S. than globally. Its 2010 U.S. revenues of $159.1 was a 15% jump over 2009 while the company’s $760 million worldwide revenues rose only 4.1% over 2009’s $730 million.

In his new post Young will oversee, among other accounts, CVS Media ($150 million), Unilever ($800 million), Abbott Laboratories ($230 million-plus), Boehringer ($220 million), Farmers Insurance ($100 million), Sun Products ($60 million) and Skyy Spirits ($10 million).

“These new appointments represent important steps in a strategy designed to increase Mindshare North America’s role in our agency’s global plans,” said Mindshare Worldwide CEO Dominic Proctor.

Antony Young, who speaks with a thick New Zealander accent, began his advertising career 21 years ago at Saatchi & Saatchi New Zealand, a Publicis Groupe agency. In 1995 Young relocated to Hong Kong to become Saatchi & Saatchi Asia’s regional media chief. A year later he became CEO of Zenith Media which twice won “Media Agency of the Year” and claimed Asia’s first ever Cannes Media Gold Lion.