FCB bosses say there are no plans for brand to return to Australia

Edward Bell and James Mok at Spikes today

Newly rebranded creative agency FCB has no plans to re-enter Australia or Hong Kong; an agency’s market presence should not be swayed by the “ego” of putting flags on a map, the agency’s APAC executive creative director James Mok said today.

Talking to Mumbrella at the Spikes Asia event in Singapore, the New Zealander said: “Where agencies have a market presence should not be about ego, it should be about smart business. The flags on a map strategy is dangerous, because it forces you to spend money when you don’t have to,” Mok said.

FCB, which dropped the ‘Draft’ from its name in March to restore the 141 year-old agency brand, closed its Melbourne operation in September 2012after losing lynchpin client Honda to Leo Burnett. It pulled the brand out of Sydney, bringing to an end two decades of operations in Australia, at the start of July this year. All clients and staff were transferred to AJF Partnership.