Ad industry brain drain continues

Once again, the country's most sought-after adman, Mike Bosman – former CEO of FCB and latterly TBWA\Hunt\Lascaris in South Africa, has been tempted out of semi-retirement in Franschhoek, this time to head up TBWA interests in Eastern Europe. He will be based in St Petersburg.

Mike Schalit, founder of Net#work, will be moving to London as marketing director of Virgin Atlantic. Schalit, it will be remembered, was responsible for Net#work landing the Virgin advertising account when the iconic airline first started flying to South Africa more than a decade ago.

Finweek's Tony Koenderman has been appointed global co-ordinator for the Cannes International Advertising Festival from 2010 to 2015 as a result of his many years of experience in putting together his AdReview, which he will continue to produce. Koenderman will be commuting between Europe and South Africa but will be moving his home base to Paris.

“Far too young”

Both John Hunt and Reg Lascaris are to retire at the end of this year but both claim they are “far too young to sit around doing nothing” and while they are playing their cards close to their chests, it is understood that Lascaris will has taken an interest in small ad agency on the island of Santorini and Hunt, who will move to London, will be non-executive chairman of the London International Advertising Awards.

The Jupiter Drawing Room's Graham Warsop is also to become a “swallow” – commuting between the UK and South Africa – as he takes up an appointment as Emeritus Professor of Marketing at Oxford University. He will continue as executive chairman of Jupiter.

It is widely expected that John Farquhar will announce his retirement from AdVantage magazine on his 80th birthday in just under two weeks time. Farquhar did confide in a colleague this past weekend that he had no intention of retiring completely and has apparently agreed to become a non-executive director and creative advisor to the small ad agency in Greece recently purchased by Lascaris.

And if you believe that, you will have completely forgotten today's date.