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Jeans: significant move to Magna

IPG's worldwide negotiation arm, Magna Global, has appointed Initiative Media's Unilever Europe managing director, Roy Jeans, to head its first non-broadcast wing in the UK.

As managing director, Jeans will be right-hand man to Magna Global UK's chairman, Mick Perry, who has been responsible for the broadcast business since 2001.

Up until now, Magna has only been conducting broadcast planning and buying, so Jeans' appointment will be seen as a significant move in the development of the group, which acts on behalf of BrandConnection, Initiative and Universal McCann.

Jerry Hill, Initiative's group chief executive, said: "If you are going to negotiate things that are more than television, then you need someone with skills and expertise to do so."

It is understood Jeans will continue to also function as managing director for Unilever over the following months, but will gradually hand responsibility over to a new team.

Meanwhile, Initiative has been handed the online buying business, worth £1.5m, for all of Unilever's brands bar Birds Eye and has appointed a manager to head up the FMCG giant's online account at the agency.

David Burns has joined Initiative as digital manager for Unilever from Manning Gottlieb OMD, where he was account director on the Alliance & Leicester and AA accounts.

The agency handles the lion's share of the traditional media planning and buying for Unilever - Carat handles planning for Birds Eye - as well as the digital strategic work for the group's brands, which include Persil, Lynx, Marmite and Flora.

The development sees the FMCG company take the online buying business out of three-year incumbent Zentropy Partners and move it into Initiative and signals a renewed effort by the manufacturer to up its digital marketing activities.