The head of Cossette‘s Toronto office is going global.
Cossette chairman and CEO Claude Lessard announced today the appointment of Toronto agency executive VP Brett Marchand as president and chief operating officer of global operations.
A company statement said Lessard will shift from the day-to-day operations of Cossette to "concentrate more intensely on essential priorities critical to the future of the company such as senior client relationships, major new business initiatives worldwide and supporting Brett Marchand and his team in their efforts to build Cossette’s global success."
The change comes a few months after Lessard effectively staved off a takeover attempt led by his long-time partner at Cossette François Duffar by selling the agency network to Mill Road Capital.
Marchand brings to the position a variety of experience from both the agency and client side, including roles as president of Lowe Roche and VP of marketing at Molson, as well as time at Campbell’s and Procter & Gamble.
Marchand’s focus will be on the global day-to-day operations, working with an executive team made up of Gregor Angus, EVP and COO of Cossette UK; Marcel Barthe, VP corporate strategy; Pierre Delagrave, president media, research and interactive services; Martin Faucher, VP and CFO; Dominique Lebel, EVP for Montreal and Quebec City; and Colin Schleining, EVP and COO Cossette U.S.
"For the last 30 years, Claude has written a five-year strategic plan for Cossette, which is amazing. Now I’m leading this one," said Marchand. "The executive team has been meeting in Toronto this morning in a closed-door session finalizing our plan for presentation to the board tomorrow. It’s now mine and my team’s strategic plan, and not Claude and his team’s plan. And that will be the playbook for the next five years."
A big part of that playbook will be a strong emphasis on expanding the Cossette brand around the world.
"My role is to be the international builder for the company," said Marchand. "Our goal is to be an international community of agencies. Where we go, how we get there and how fast do we do it will be what falls out of the strategic plan."
Marchand is convinced the Cossette model can be a success on the global stage.
"There’s a reason Cossette is No. 1 in Canada; it’s got a unique model," he said. "I was a client for a lot of big agencies for a long time and I’ve seen everything. I came to Cossette because I thought what made it successful in Canada could make it successful internationally."
A successor for Marchand in Toronto will be announced in the coming weeks.
