The name change is part of a process that began in 2013, with Publicis' acquisition of Prima Plus, one of South Africa’s first specialist Direct Marketing (DM) and CRM agencies. At the time of the acquisition, a decision was made to introduce the Arc brand into South Africa, by evolving Prima Plus into Prima Arc.

Eighteen months later, the management team has decided that the time is right to embrace Arc and all it stands for by rebranding as Arc South Africa.

“As one of the country’s first specialist DM agencies, Prima was probably ahead of its time. I always wanted us to be good, and I wanted us to be big. But, back then, being part of a global network, and playing on a global stage was just a pipe dream,” says founder Peter Farrell.

“The decision to rebrand as Arc, now, is a direct result of the renewed energy and excitement that we feel within the agency. Our people have already embraced Arc; now it’s time to share that energy with the industry and our clients.”

Internationally, Arc Worldwide is regarded as an intelligent brand activation agency, renowned for its unique Shopper Back approach, which helps clients understand their customers and their relationship with brands by looking at the world through the lens of a ‘shopper’, and then delivering relevant and creative brand engagements.

In line with this approach, Arc South Africa will continue to focus on data-lead direct engagements that drive changes in human behaviour.

“Like Arc Worldwide, we believe that when you create human value, you create value for your clients,” says newly appointed MD, Velia Duncan.

In order to ensure that the rebrand is supported at every level, Arc South Africa has also restructured its management team, with Farrell moving into the role of chairman, and client services director and deputy MD Velia Duncan taking on the role of managing director.

Other senior management changes include the appointment of Paul Geary as director of digital and innovation; and Quinton Luck as executive creative director. Keith Lindsay continues in his role as business development director.

This new structure aims to empower the agency to move into the future with intelligence and confidence, ensuring that the agency can deliver at every level.

“The fact that we all believe so strongly in what we do, and at the same time enjoy doing it, makes my job of leading our agency a whole lot easier. Our commitment to smart, simple and actionable ideas that translate into truly rewarding and behaviour-changing creative is what will drive us forward,” Duncan concludes.

About Arc

Arc is all about customer relationships that result in more profit. As one of the first SA agencies operating in the CRM space with a database division devoted entirely to CRM, we use human insights combined with strong creative ideas to create smart, results-driven work. With experience across financial services, automotive, petro chemical, FMCG, retail, pharmaceutical, tobacco and NGO's, we offer solid customer engagement, longer tenure and ultimately increased customer spend. We call it 'Data made Magic'.

For more information, visit the Arc website.