‘Investing in top talent is crucial’: GroupM’s commerce team grows by three

February 24, 2025 10:03

(L-R):Veronica Li, Ben Grace, Claudia Domingues

The commerce team at WPP’s GroupM Australia and New Zealand has grown with three fresh appointments.

On Monday morning, GroupM named Ben Grace, Veronica Li and Claudia Domingues as the newest employees to join the network’s commerce division – an offering that uplifts GroupM’s agencies with commerce solutions covering technology, data, strategy, creative and activation.

Together, Domingues, Li and Grace will be led by GroupM Commerce managing director, Marc Lomas, while being supported by group director of commerce strategy, Leah Jackson.

Their combined expertise is expected to enhance the commerce solutions related to GroupM’s agencies – Mindshare, EssenceMediacom and Wavemaker.

“Investing in top talent is crucial in today’s dynamic commerce environment,” Lomas said.

“At GroupM, we’re proud to welcome these exceptional individuals to our team, bolstering our capabilities and reinforcing our commitment to shaping the next era of media by delivering outstanding results and innovative commerce solutions for our clients.”

Grace and Li both step into the role of group director of commerce strategy.

Prior to working at GroupM, Grace was the chief executive officer at American martech company, SparkXGlobal. He’s also worked at Accuen, the programmatic trading desk at Omnicom, where he served as director, global vice president and North American general manager over the nearly five years he was there.

Meanwhile, boasting international experience from both Publicis Media and PHD in Shanghai, Li’s career has seen her work with well-known brands such as Unilever, P&G and L’Oréal.

(L-R):Veronica Li, Ben Grace, Claudia Domingues

It has also given her retail media expertise that is expected to generate growth for GroupM clients, including beverage and food organisation, Danone, and health product provider, Colgate-Palmolive.

Finally, Domingues will serve as head of commerce platforms, allowing her to exercise her skills in omnichannel strategies, retail media and commerce to provide clients with relevant solutions. Prior to GroupM, Domingues spent more than three years at performance marketing agency, Kinesso.

First joining the business in October 2021 as a senior digital and performance director, Domingues wrapped up her time there filling the position of media activations lead from may 2023 to December 2024.

The announcements come shortly after GroupM’s Mindshare made some senior appointments – including Sydney head of strategy Elliott Eldridge’s promotion to national head of strategy and national head of investment Nik Doble’s promotion to the C-suit, having been named its new chief investment officer.