iris Beijing appoints Lester Kahn as MD

iris launched its first office in China in Beijing during March 2009 and later brought David King, iris’s regional CEO for China, on board to launch Shanghai in January 2010 as well as take over from interim MD Peony Wu.

Kahn joined the agency this week and will be responsible for overseeing the growth of iris’ Beijing office and taking care of its key clients like Sony Ericsson. He will report to King.

Kahn has held senior executive roles in agencies including Momentum in China for nine years. Most recently he was commercial director at Omnicom’s Unisono Fieldmarketing in Shanghai for three years.

Originally from South Africa, Kahn brings over 20 years’ agency experience working with global clients including Unilever, Microsoft, Goodyear, Nescafe, Intel, Exxonmobil and Nike.

“In line with many of our clients, we treat China as a separate region for growth,” King commented. “Kahn worked across retail, events, field marketing and sponsorship, so he’s a perfect ambassador for iris’ integrated approach.”

Iris Worldwide's founder and global CEO Ian Millner will be relocating to Asia this summer, as the agency looks to expand and increase its focus on rapidly growing markets in the region.