As reported by B&T on 14th July, 2026

Cheil Australia has promoted head of client services Kim Le Gras to general manager of campaign and creative.

It comes after the agency recently took control of Samsung’s creative account in Australia.

Le Gras joined the team earlier this year, bringing with her 20 years of agency and brand leadership across some of Australia’s biggest marketing clients.

Her career spans Senior Business Director at DDB Sydney on Telstra, Global Account Director at Grey London on GSK – overseeing campaigns across 50+ markets and earning a Gold Effie for creative effectiveness; Client Director at Hogarth across Suncorp, Vodafone and Dyson; Group Account Director at Yes Agency, the on-campus creative agency inside Optus, and Managing Partner at AnalogFolk Australia.

“Cheil has capability this market hasn’t fully seen yet. My job is to change that – through the ambition we bring to every brief and how we show up for clients,” Le Gras said in a statement.

Cheil Australia’s CEO Marvin Park described her as a “phenomenal leader”.

“This promotion signals a clear direction for Cheil Australia – we are building on our deeply rooted strengths in retail and commerce to accelerate our creative proposition in market. I am thrilled to partner with her as we drive this next era of growth.”

In her new role, Le Gras will oversee all campaign and creative output across Cheil Australia’s client portfolio, leading the agency’s creative, production and campaign teams and driving the growth of its creative proposition in market.

Cheil Australia currently has about 90 staff, while globally it has a workforce of 8,000 in 46 countries.

As reported by Little Black Book on 3rd July

Samsung has awarded its media account to Publicis Groupe and with Cheil to receive a significantly broader creative remit, following a competitive review.

The agency becomes Samsung's sole creative partner in the Australian market, with incumbent agency Clemenger BBDO not advancing to the final round of the review.

“Samsung Australia recognises the efforts of every participating agency in its recent roster review, and can confirm the process has now concluded," a Samsung Electronics Australia spokesperson said.

Cheil, which is not considered an in-house agency, has nearly 100 staff in Australia and a global workforce of 8,000 in 46 countries.

Cheil Australia CEO Marvin Park said, “We’re thrilled to continue our work with Samsung Australia, as we believe no other agency understands Samsung's business the way we do.

“This is what true partnership looks like."

The brand, which spends $120 million on media billings in Australia, will work with Publicis Groupe to create a bespoke ‘Power of One’ team to work on the Samsung account. Globally, the Samsung unit is called ‘Publicis Constellation’.

Publicis Groupe ANZ CEO Michael Rebelo confirmed the news.

“We’re thrilled to partner with Samsung at a particularly exciting time for both organisations,” he said.

"We look forward to bringing the full power of Publicis Groupe Australia’s connected capabilities to help unlock growth across the entire Samsung Australia enterprise.”