Ex-BBH London’s Abbe Hale returns home to fulfill general manager role at Y&R New Zealand

Y&R New Zealand has announced the appointment of Abbe Hale (left) as general manager of the group’s Auckland creative agency.

A born and raised New Zealander, Hale has spent the majority of her 16-year career in London and New York. Following 5 years with the iconic BBH London, Hale moved to New York to join Anomaly before rejoining BBH in New York. She was appointed to the BBH board in 2011 and held the position of Head of account management until earlier this year.

Hale brings extensive international experience back to the New Zealand market, having run accounts as diverse as Diageo, Sony Ericsson, Unilever, British Airways and the BBC.

Says James Hurman, managing director, Y&R New Zealand: “For obvious reasons we’re hugely excited about Abbe returning home to join us. She’s a New Zealander with a pedigree of brilliant work on iconic brands at one of the world’s greatest agencies. And she’s a central part of our vision for Y&R NZ.”

Says Josh Moore, executive creative director, Y&R New Zealand: “Our goal is to pull together a team of world-class problem solvers in every discipline of the New Zealand business. Abbe is absolutely one of those, an addition to the agency who brings a level of client service experience that’s unprecedented in NZ.”

Hale will join Moore and Hurman in the leadership of Y&R and Ideaworks’ client service experience, creative product and culture.

Says Hale: “From the moment I first met James and Josh I was impressed with their vision, passion and commitment to create something that is truly exceptional in the NZ market. Their ambition of ‘Work That The World Looks Up To’ especially resonated with me and I’m absolutely thrilled to have been invited to be part of the team. I truly believe that with all the incredible talent at Y&R we will do amazing things together.”