Simon Schleuniger and Shady Ashong.

 

With the new management, the agency will also be given a new name that expresses the philosophy even more clearly: on August 19, the company will be renamed Visàvis. Andreas Schärer will continue to support the company as a strategic consultant until the end of 2020, after which he will devote himself to new tasks and challenges.

Ashong and Schleuniger can continue to build on a long-standing customer base and a proven team of around 20 communications professionals.

The two new agency owners pay tribute with great respect to the achievements of the company founder, who has built up and expanded the agency as a founding member since 1999: "Andreas Schärer has led the agency with prudence and foresight through the last two decades of the advertising industry, which have been characterized by many changes. That inspires us greatly."

Andreas Schärer says: "I am very happy and grateful that I can now pass the company on to good hands - Shady Ashong and Simon Schleuniger are two top communications professionals with a lot of commitment and heart who complement each other perfectly. I am convinced that the agency has a very successful future ahead of it."

Adreas Schärer.

 

The new name stands for partnership-based cooperation

The new name Visàvis stands for the special characteristics of the agency and its employees. Customer proximity, working together as partners, a close connection between employees and their customers - in other words, a multiple vis-à-vis, "We have been living these values for a long time - now it's time for them to be expressed in our name," says Simon Schleuniger, who heads the Creation and Events departments at the renamed agency. "We are neither an impersonal communications factory nor a glamorous advertising agency with overly big egos. We are a focused and serious agency that has always stood for sustainable communication and solid craftsmanship at the highest level. The satisfaction and success of our clients are at the heart of our work," says Shady Ashong, responsible for digital and consulting.

This is certainly one of the main reasons why the Baden-based agency maintains long-standing and close partnerships with its clients, Schenker Storen, Hero, Kärcher, Aargauische Gebäudeversicherung, Privera and many more.

 

The full-service agency with its own event location

Visàvis is and will remain a full-service agency with a focus on creation, digital and events. The agency will continue to rely on the many years of experience and expertise of its competent employees. It also has a broad network of partners, such as the digital 3D factory Visual Now. And Visàvis has another special feature to offer: From September 1, 2019, it will breathe new life into the "Druckerei" cultural and event location and take over its management. From September, the location in the same building in Baden will be available for events such as AGMs, product presentations, cultural events, readings, corporate and private functions for up to 250 people.

In the current commercials, hail and storms damage the buildings in the municipal coats of arms of Bellikon, Burg and Kaiseraugst. The message behind it: AGV reckons with the risks of natural hazards and is the reliable partner at the side of building owners in the canton of Aargau in the event of damage.

The campaign will run until the end of 2018, focusing on seasonal topics such as flooding, storms, hail and fire hazards. New municipalities will be featured in each wave in order to generate as much attention as possible for fire and natural hazards in the canton of Aargau. The flood theme was launched at the end of April with the coats of arms of the municipalities of Aarburg, Brugg, Oberentfelden and Wettingen.

The campaign can be seen regionally on Tele M1, Telem1.ch, Azonline.ch and Passenger TV. At the start of the second wave, the campaign will be expanded to include a microsite with a quiz and further information: Agv-praevention.ch.

Responsible at Schärer: Dani Kobi (art direction, concept), Claudia Minchau (project management, text), Stephanie Schmid (graphics), Shady Ashong and Fabio Gloor (online). Responsible at AGV: Christina Troglia (Secretary General, Head of Communications), Lorna Oliver (Communications Specialist). Spot production, animations: Concept 2, Stefan Jäger.

During this time, the agency will also be supported by interim manager Cuno Singer. The 50-year-old has extensive experience in the areas of finance, sales, processes and management from various professional backgrounds. Most recently, he spent over ten years at Dyson Switzerland as Managing Director and most recently as European Trading Director.

"Cuno Singer's extensive experience is very valuable to us. Together with his first-class network, he will be able to provide us with excellent support in this important phase," says 42-year-old Executive Board member Shady Ashong.

Andreas Schärer on the background to his decision to take time out: "All the signs and my intuition tell me very clearly that this break is right and important now. I'm allowing myself this time out from the hectic pace of everyday life and the daily pressure to calm down and think clearly. My colleagues will lead the company and continue to develop it together with the great team - I have the utmost confidence in them."

The communications industry - like the entire working world - is undergoing major change. New models and work philosophies are in demand. The Schärer agency is in the midst of this transformation process to become an innovative company that works with modern network structures based on the self-empowerment of each team member.

Together with Andreas Schärer, Shady Ashong has formed the management board of the full-service agency since September 2017. Simon Schleuniger, who has been with the company since 2015, was elected to the extended management team. The creative department was also strengthened by Art Director Daniel Kobi.

Reduced to the core

Andreas Schärer led the company over the last ten years as the main shareholder under the name Schaerer and Partner. The reflection on the origin of his family name leads to the change to the spelling "Schärer".

According to the release, this is happening in tandem with the cultural change to an innovative company that operates with modern network structures based on the self-empowerment of each team member. "Reduced in structures, characterized by strong personalities with a high awareness of the common direction and with a lot of power for innovative, meaningful communication works," it says in a statement.

"The change of name underlines the transformation of the agency. We see this as a step in the continuous development of the company. The new network structure ensures that the best possible staffing brings the maximum know-how to each project," says Andreas Schärer.

New management, new art director

Shady Ashong was most recently CEO of the online marketing agency Löwenstark, responsible for Switzerland and Austria. He has gained international experience with brands such as BenQ, IBM and LG Electronics. Together with Andreas Schärer, Shady Ashong leads Schärer and is responsible for the online and digitalization divisions. Together, they have the goal of further developing the company as a communications network.

Simon Schleuniger joins the management team as Head of Creation and Events in the extended management team. The graduate graphic designer looks back on many years of experience in creation and event management and was already responsible for the management of the graphic unit of Schaerer und Partner in the past years.

Daniel Kobi joined the company in March 2018 and is responsible for art direction as the creative head of the agency. Previously, he worked in permanent positions and as a freelancer for agencies such as Havas Zurich, KSP Werbeagentur, Publicis, Wirz and Jung von Matt/Limmat.

Kobi is the winner of numerous awards, including ADC Switzerland and Europe, Eurobest, New York Festivals, LIAA, Effie and Swiss Poster Award.

This completes the management process following the departures of long-time key personnel Patrick Crivellari as Creative Director (in March 2018 after 10 years) and David Kirchhof as Head of the Online Unit (leaving the company in May 2018 after 12 years).