He succeeds Dave Poole, FCBi Europe president, and is the first creative for many years to take on the role.
After assuming the chair, Arnold said that a key challenge for the Agencies Council and the industry was to continue to embrace new technologies and successfully integrate them with more traditional forms of direct marketing.
Blac was formed in March by the merger of Edge Ideas and Feel, the creative agency Arnold founded in 2002. Prior to founding Feel, Arnold was integrated creative director at Saatchi & Saatchi.
Mike Barnes, DMA director of marketing and business development, said: "Chris will play a pivotal role in ensuring that our agency members are reaping the maximum benefits of DMA membership and his passion for direct marketing and industry innovation makes him an excellent representation of the creativity and originality coming out of DM agencies."
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