Squids

Stuart’s 20 year production career includes working with many of London’s top commercial production companies and alongside several of the world’s best advertising directors, photographers, agencies and international brands.

In 2006, as Head of TV at Saatchi & Saatchi, Switzerland, Stuart helmed the global production work on the agency’s largest global advertisers before he then founded Pathfinder Media in 2009, an international media creation company involved in complex production projects requiring production teams all across the globe.

A spell in America with Splash Worldwide Agency also saw him working on international campaigns for Adidas, Camelbak, Newell Rubbermaid and Microsoft.

Stuart joined the Squids team in 2012 bringing with him the same focused production expertise and is in charge of “all moving images”.

Main client experience: NESTLE, CEREAL PARTNERS WORLDWIDE, NESPRESSO, JIM BEAM, CARLSBERG, SEAT, ORANGE, ADIDAS, CAMELBAK, MICROSOFT, NEWELL RUBBERMAID, UNILEVER, RECKITT BENCKISER, NOVARTIS, EMIRATES, ETHIHAD AIRWAYS.

Vanessa has been working in communications for over 17 years.

A communications graduate from the « Université Libre de Bruxelles » she kick-started her career at Vasco Data Security as a Marketing Services Coordinator.

In the ensuing years, Vanessa worked for both client side and advertising agencies alike. These included international agencies such as Dentsu Brussels and Saatchi & Saatchi Geneva, where she led many international brands.

Before joining Squids in 2016, Vanessa spent 6 years at Nespresso HQ, leading global product launches and big scale corporate campaigns such as George Clooney. In extension of her role, she was also responsible for the international coordination between country markets and Headquarters acting as Brand Guardian as well as Knowledge and Expertise Master.

She brings to the network her extensive knowledge in communications and experience leading international teams and clients.

Main client experience: NESPRESSO, LEXUS, ORANGE, SEAT, NOVARTIS, BOBCAT, DAIKIN, EMIRATES, Private Banking.

Armed with a degree in Psychology, History and Sociology from the University of Manchester, Kira has spent the past 15 years roaming the roads of communications.

Born in Geneva, bilingual and bicultural, she first started as a journalist, continued as editor and event manager, to then launch into advertising with Gyro International, managing campaigns globally.

After a stint leading key clients for the Gyro Geneva office, some freelance communications work and opening a restaurant, she joined top ranking global interactive entertainment software company, Electronic Arts.

There, she developed and led EA’s social media listening strategy worldwide and worked on consumer journeys to optimise business’ marketing strategies for franchises such as FIFA, Battlefield and The Sims. She also actively participated in the company’s transition to digital and was a member of the core thinking group which activated battle plans.

Kira brings to Squids her extensive expertise in new media and the digital world.

Main client experience: ELECTRONIC ARTS (EA), FIFA, BATTLEFIELD, THE SIMS, CAPSUGEL, FIRMENICH, INTERNATIONAL AIDS SOCIETY, NESPRESSO, DENTSPLY, FORTIS.

Günter loves advertising and design. Although he started his career as a technical constructor, his affinity to advertising was apparent early on. He began his studies in Communication-Design at the Technical College in Wiesbaden and then moved to Australia to study at the ‘University of Technology – Sydney, Faculty of Design’. This was followed by a detour at Emery Vincent Associated Design Studio in Sydney where he successfully completed his studies as a Communication-Designer.

Back to Germany, Günter was recruited by Meiré & Meiré Design Agency, followed by 16 years of experience in advertising agencies like Michael Conrad & Leo Burnett, Saatchi & Saatchi, and Publicis, where he worked as an Art & Creative Director on numerous international clients and won over 20 national and international advertising awards.

Besides finding crackling ideas for all kinds of clients, Günter emphasizes that work has to be fun in order to perform successfully. Therefore, he loves working with interesting and friendly people. Presently he lives in Frankfurt and joined Squids Network in 2012.

Besides his creative advertising life, Günter has a second passion in working as an illustrator.

Main client experience: NESPRESSO, SWATCH, AUDI, RENAULT, COCA-COLA, MARLBORO-NETWORK, REEBOK, HEWLETT-PACKARD, PANASONIC, NESTLÉ MAGGI, NESTLÉ HERTA, NESTLÉ ALETE, COMPASS GROUP, BECK’S, BUITONI, T-SYSTEMS, ZEISS.

After completing his studies in Economics and Chinese in Frankfurt, Peter started to work as a Junior Copywriter in 1997 at Scholz & Friends, Hamburg. He continued as Senior Copywriter at Huth + Wenzel, Frankfurt and as Creative Director at Publicis, Frankfurt untill he joined Squids Network in 2012.

In his more than 20 year long career, Peter has been serving many well known international clients and has won several awards at international festivals. However, he enjoys it most when “normal” people acknowledge his work with a smile. He loves to deliver creative concepts, ideas, stories, headlines and copy that make a difference.

Main client experience: MERCEDES, RENAULT, DACIA, SUZUKI, MAGGI, KRAFT FOODS, NESPRESSO, RECKITT BENCKISER, COMPASS GROUP, COCA-COLA, CREDIT SUISSE, BASF, COMMERZBANK, PANASONIC, SAMSUNG, SWATCH.

In the past 15 years, Massimo has lead and created both local and global campaigns for some of the top brands in the world. After crafting his creativity in agencies like DDB and Saatchi & Saatchi in Italy, he stepped up to an international position for Saatchi & Saatchi, Geneva in early 2008 and has been a part of Squids since 2014.

His strong creative approach has been awarded at countless top international advertising festivals and has lead to invitations to lecture for Universities like La Sapienza and Istituto Europe di Design.

Massimo’s passion is to create ideas able to travel seamlessly through all media, from TV and print to digital and social media campaigns.

Main client experience: RENAULT, SWISSCOM, NOVARTIS, SEAT, ALITALIA, P&G, NESTLÉ, NESPRESSO, MCDONALD’S, CARAN D’ACHE, GREENPEACE, MERCK SERONO, ALCON, ENEL, EMIRATES, ORANGE, SWATCH, FIVB.

After graduating from a Master’s Degree and DEA in Contemporary Art History from the Sorbonne in 1999, Nixe started her career in New York at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, then MoMA.

She was hired by A Corporation for Art + Commerce, where she produced shoots for Inez van Lamsweerde & Vinoodh Matadin, amongst others.

Moving back to Paris after 5 years in New York, she continued her career as a producer in the Parisian fashion world, working for the likes of Vincent Peters and Paolo Roversi. She also worked on many fashion shows for castings and developed targeted showcase websites for fashion designers such as Karl Lagerfeld and Emanuel Ungaro.

In 2007, Nixe returned to her childhood city, Geneva. There being no consequential fashion photography industry, she created Super Production, a company focused on Art Buying and Production, in order to bridge the gap between Geneva and the rest of the photography world and has been a “Squid” since 2011,

Main client experience: PRADA, HERMES, NESPRESSO, MANDARIN ORIENTAL, VACHERON CONSTANTIN, ACTION INNOCENCE, LYRIA, MOET & CHANDON, PHONAK, LONGINE, MISSONI, BERGDORF GOODMAN, CREDIT SUISSE.

A designer in the advertising world for over 30 years, Damien has worked for various agencies including Bozell Advertising where he was in charge of iconic brands like Patek Philippe and Chrysler Jeep.

Attracted by Californian Design, he worked a year at Mike Salisbury’s Communication in Los Angeles for Gotcha Sportswear, and in the movie Industry.

He was then recruited by Saatchi & Saatchi Switzerland for the B2B creative department, working there for 6 years with international clients such as Dupont de Nemours, Invista, Lycra, Tupperware and organisations such as ITU Telecom.

Damien has now been independent for over 14 years, and joined the Squids network in 2011.

Main client experience: PATEK PHILIPPE, CHRYSLER JEEP, GOTCHA SPORTSWEAR, DUPONT DE NEMOURS, INVISTA, LYCRA, TUPPERWARE, NESPRESSO, MCDONALD’S, ITU, WWF, ELNA, CONSTELLIUM.

Rich started off in journalism and travel writing before turning his creativity and penmanship to the world of advertising and communication.

He was born, bred and educated in the UK, working there briefly before heading to Paris, where he joined Ogilvy as a copywriter (fluent in French!). From 2001, he was part of the Digital Advertising team that won multiple advertising awards for IBM.

Rich continued to hone his communication skills in Paris and Montreal, working for major agencies in video, print, social media and brand identity. In Canada, he was Senior Copywriter at KBS, overseeing major international accounts such as Subway restaurants, Ubisoft, Microsoft, MINI, L’Oréal Paris, Danone, Bombardier and BNP Paribas.

Since returning to Europe, Rich has helped shape new identities for several NESCAFÉ brands, worked on the launch of an online platform for the United Nations, created video and blog reports live from the World Economic Forum for Renault-Nissan, and helped drive a new social media strategy for a chain of luxury Japanese hotels.

He joined Squids in 2015, bringing with him his expertise and talent as a strategic copywriter.

Main client experience: NESCAFE, WEF, UN, RENAULT-NISSAN, SUBWAY, UBISOFT, MICROSOFT, MINI, L’ORÉAL, DANONE, BOMBARDIER, BNP PARIBAS, KBS, IBM.

Jo is rigorous at getting to the heart of why consumers think and behave as they do. She is naturally inquisitive, but tempered with scientific reasoning gained from studying a PhD in chemical physics.

From a graduate role at Nestlé, she was quickly identified as someone who combined big picture thinking with a mind for detail. She made her way through various insight and planning roles both in the UK and in the global HQ in Switzerland before moving on to other big-name brands at GSK and Shell.

She moved to the agency side in 2007 and has run research and insight programs for a wide range of companies such as Audi, Canon and Pepsi and is soon to clock up 20 years in the industry.

Jo lives on the beautiful Southern coast of the UK, where she can be found spending time with her young daughter and cooking new Guajarati dishes handed down from her mother-in-law.

She brings her seasoned experience to Squids and has done so since 2012.

Main client experience: NESTLE, GSK, SHELL, AUDI, CANON, PEPSI, CEREAL PARTNERS WORLDWIDE.

Jasper has been working in marketing communication for close to 25 years.

He specialises in organisational identity and international brand strategy and brand management. After 10 years as Head of Strategy at the Brussels-based European Hub of Denstu Inc., Jasper set-up his own consultancy in 2009, and is currently providing strategic services to a broad portfolio of clients.

Jasper has worked as a brand consultant for World-Class brands in a broad range of sectors. He has carried out and supervised substantive brand identity and repositioning missions with the top management of organizations.

As a planner, Jasper is driven by the belief that today, in a marketplace transformed by the digital revolution and rife with product and service commoditization, an understanding of one’s deeper identity, and the need for a clear purpose and long-term vision has never been greater.

Helping brands to reinvent themselves by reconnecting with their identity and core values, and assisting these organisations in articulating and expressing what they stand for through coherent, fully integrated and highly differentiating Corporate and Brand communication, is the philosophy that drives Jasper’s approach as a strategist. He has been with Squids since 2016.

Main client experience: HOLIDAY INN WORLDWIDE, THE CROSS CHANNEL EUROSTAR SERVICE, CATERPILLAR, LEXUS, DOLE, BRIDGESTONE, YAMAHA, CANON, TOYOTA, WOLF OIL CORPORATION.

With over 30 years’ experience in design, Bruno has not only worked with most of the big FMCG companies, numerous global brands and International organisations, but also set up a bespoke design department and created two successful global design businesses.

An expert in 3D structural design, 2 & 3D packaging design, brand & corporate design, promotional design and publishing, he began his career as Art Director at “Three Points”. He was then recruited in 1986 by Motive Global Design Consultants as Senior Designer where he stayed for 14 years.

In 2000, he joined Design Board as Design Manager and Head of the Structural Design department, where he created a 3D department, allowing the company to expand its offer to full global design.

Six years later, Bruno started Dragon Rouge Belgium with his partners, part of the Dragon Rouge network, an award winning global design and innovation consultancy with offices across the world.

Since, he re-launched Motive Global Design Consultants as one of the owners. Bruno joined Squids in 2013, producing and driving excellence in packaging and design.

Main client experience: BASE, BEIERSDORF, BEL FROMAGERIE, BONGRAIN, COCA COLA COMPAGNY, DANONE, DELVAUX, EUROSTAT, GODIVA, GYLIAN CHOCOLATE, HEINEKEN, HONDA CARS, INBEV, KRAFT, MCCAIN, MERIAL, NESTLÉ, NESPRESSO, ORANGE, P&G, Q8 PETROLEUM, SARA LEE, SPADEL, SUZY WAFFLE, SCHWEPPES, UNILEVER.

With nearly 30 years’ experience under his belt, Vick is a design veteran.

A graduate from the Art Centre College of Design (Europe), he first started his career at McCann in Geneva and rapidly became Art Director in charge of McDonald’s Switzerland. He then moved around their Zurich and Milan offices for special appointments.

After three years spent mainly in the advertising and promotion field, Vick joined Théorème, an award-winning agency specialised in graphic design. Corporate brochures, watches and car catalogues became the new creative world where Vick found new ways to develop his creativity.

As the internet wave kicked-in, Vick seized the opportunity to start his own business, creating some of the first websites around.

It was finally when he won the pitch for Givaudan’s annual report in 1999, which he then produced for the next 18 years, that he launched into his new career in Editorial and Annual Reports design.

His extensive experience with hundreds of magazines, brochures and Annual Reports is now in Squids’ hands!

Main client experience: GIVAUDAN, RAYMOND WEIL, UNIVERSAL, TUDOR, KRAFT FOODS, CADBURY, TUPPERWARE, FIND DIAGNOSTICS, THE GRADUATE INSTITUTE, COLGATE-PALMOLIVE, INTERNATIONAL COMMITTEE OF THE RED CROSS, UNHCR, MÉDECINS SANS FRONTIÈRES.

In the graphic design industry since 1987, Raphael’s adventures started with an apprenticeship at one of the most renown Swiss-Romandie companies of the time, Burggraf Photolithos.

A diploma with merit in hand, he spent the following years learning and working as technologies evolved from the 90s to the new millennium, making his way through various Swiss companies and perfecting his skills in the various disciplines, including image acquisition on drum scanners (Hell, Crosfield, Fuji), Photoshop, Illustrator, Quark X-Press and In Design.

In 2003, Raphaël bought the company he had been working for and is today the sole owner of Scan Graphic SA, a specifically small structure to optimise quality of output and services, and key link in the production chain for projects with global visibility.

Raphaël joined Squids in 2015 with the same dedication to excellence, finding the most adapted solutions whatever the media.

Main client experience: CITROËN, HONDA, GIRARD-PERREGAUX, SOTHEBY’S, MONTRES FP JOURNE, GROUPE RICHEMONT, TUPPERWARE, BEAU-RIVAGE PALACE LAUSANNE, MUDAC, EDITIONS FAVRE, NESPRESSO, CONSTELLIUM.

With over 34 years’ experience spent in the graphic design, advertising and direct marketing worlds, Marc is master of his arts.

After years studying and learning the ropes in printing, Marc took the plunge into the ruthless world of advertising in 1992 through the back door, as life support assistant and part-time lemon wedge cutter for Saatchi & Saatchi’s Head of Production.

Quickly and without remorse, he replaced his boss as lead; his foresight and problem-solving skills making him stand out as a very much appreciated and valuable asset to the agency.

Since, the famous catch-phrase « Nothing is impossible » has become his life moto and way of working.

Do you have a question about a specific type of paper, a fold, a varnish, a pastel metallic pantone, the print result on driftwood from the Okavango delta? Ask Marc, he can explain. He has been Squids’ printing guru since 2011.

Main client experience: NESPRESSO, DUPONT DE NEMOURS, LYCRA, ORANGE, ORANGE, CAMEL, WWF, P&G, EMIRATES, CITROËN, MÉDECINS SANS FRONTIÈRES.