Environics Analytics has appointed advertising veteran Nigel Pleasants to the newly created position of vice-president, strategic partnerships, effective immediately.
Pleasants has more than 20 years of advertising experience having worked on business development and media services at agencies in London, New York, Los Angeles, Toronto and Montreal.
He spent seven years at The Globe and Mail, first as director of marketing and readership development and later as a member of its corporate management team, overseeing readership development for the newspaper, magazines and online media.
Pleasants first acquainted himself with Environics Analytics as owner and operator of Sal-Mark Inc., a Toronto-based company that provides consulting and business development services.
Last summer he helped the firm build a “Gaybourhood” database that includes data on gay spending in 75 categories–from fashion and fitness to nightlife and electronics–enabling Environics to estimate the spending power of the gay market at the neighbourhood level.
In his new role, Pleasants will be responsible for developing new data supplier and distribution partnerships from the firm’s Toronto office. Environics Analytics currently partners with research firms like BBM Canada and Ipsos Reid Canada.
“He understands our industry in terms of the kinds of data we build and how marketers use it,” said Jan Kestle, president of Environics Analytics. “Nigel’s many years of experience in marketing and advertising make him the perfect choice to develop new business and platforms for our analytical services.”
Pleasants said his goal is to grow and service existing partnerships, while building new ones. He believes his years of experience in marketing and communications in Canada and abroad will help him “understand the needs of our marketing clients and satisfy them through the most appropriate partnerships.”
