Publicis Mojo Auckland shuts shop – Graeme Wills to start new agency Joy; ECD Lachie McPherson’s next move yet to be revealed
UPDATED – The NZ industry is in shock today following news that Publicis Mojo New Zealand has ceased trading.
As a result, former Publicis Mojo shareholder and chairman Graeme Wills will start a new agency called Joy on January 1.
Wills (near left) will work on some projects with some of the senior Mojo crew, including ECD Lachie McPherson (far left), who CB believes is starting his own thing soon. Most of Mojo’s clients will join Joy, including Goodman Fielder, Hallenstein’s, Panasonic and Auckland City Mission.
In a statement to CB Wills said the opportunity for him to purchase Publicis Mojo NZ was tabled by Publicis late last year. However the sale did not proceed as anticipated.
Says Wills: “Publicis has indicated that it no longer requires an ongoing presence of Mojo in New Zealand, and has chosen voluntarily to appoint liquidators.
“Our intention would be that any clients from Mojo NZ that choose to join Joy would be able to do so seamlessly.
“We are excited at the idea of setting up a new communications company that is fresh, unencumbered and full of optimism.”
13 Comments
Wow! Is melb next?
Ok. Nobody likes hearing news like this. But are we talking about the same Mojo?
“Mojo are a fun and entertaining acoustic duo that have been playing all over NZ for the past 10 years. Known for their great mix of genres and refreshing take on the classics we all know and enjoy!
Weather your looking for a pub band, corporate entertainment or some lively tunes at your private celebration, Mojo can have you up and dancing or singing along with lighters waving in no time!”
I would have thought Melbourne would be the first to go down but then again Melbourne management (1) is the master of tap dancing…..
Continue chasing awards at the expense of solid business and this closure wil be the first of many to come.
Got to hand it to Wills…he sells his share back to Publicis and then 8 months later gets it back without it costing him a penny. Shades of Kerry and Ch 9.
Melbourne doesn’t have any clients left to start an agency with
He played the French off a beauty and now continues the winner.
no words will ever describe the number of advertising angels crying right now….
I feel sorry for all the people who have been affected in the wake of this on going saga of cat and mouse.
The name Joy is almost ironic… but, at the same time, has a twisted humour to it. Perhaps it should have been researched a little better – The term Joy has taken on a new meaning just as Gay did, but the Gay station of JOY FM will be delighted.
Yep Melbs is next… then Sydney will follow suit. They’ve already laid off like a bazillion staff… get those CV’s ready Mojo’ers cause next years gonna be dog eat dog.
How do you start a small agency in Oz or NZ? Give a big agency to the Mojo guys and wait.
This is a terrific example of the guys who ran a ship into an iceberg being the first ones off and into a very cushy lifeboat. The rest of you guys can swim. Or not.
The business is screwed, but management – who are the ones responsible for business success and failure – is arguably better off than ever.
What a bunch of absolute sheisters
They didn’t ‘shut shop’, the liquidators are in. Hold on to your houses…