with some 1,300 employees in Canada, the United Kingdom and the United States.
Vision7 International has two operating divisions: Cossette, a fully integrated agency which occupies a leadership position in Canada, and EDC, a group of discipline-specific marketing agencies. Cossette brings value to its clients by providing various communications services in one simple integrated offering. Cossette has offices in Quebec City, Montreal, Toronto, Vancouver and Halifax. EDC is a global network of discipline-specific agencies, including award-winning international agency brands Dare Digital, Elvis Communications, Citizen Paine, Citizen Optimum, Citizen Brando, RocketXL and Jungle Media. In addition to its offices in New York, Los Angeles and London, EDC also has Canadian operations.
Brett Marchand is President and Chief Executive Officer of Cossette. He has distinguished himself in the Canadian marketing and advertising community as a champion of great advertising and an ardent believer in the power of creative communications to build business. He has been closely involved in breakthrough business-building marketing campaigns as both a client and ad agency executive.
While at Cossette, Mr. Marchand has led the Toronto agency back to international acclaim with several Lions at the prestigious Cannes Advertising Festival and domestic awards shows such as the Marketing Awards. Cossette has been a finalist in Strategy magazine’s annual Agency of the Year competition three times since Mr. Marchand’s arrival. Cossette Toronto has also been successful in attracting many new clients under his leadership, including Best Buy Canada (Future Shop), Cadbury, Grey Power (insurance), Habitat for Humanity, Procter & Gamble, Research in Motion (Blackberry), Sage Software (Simply Accounting) and Sony PlayStation to name a few.
In addition to his duties as an officer of Cossette, Mr. Marchand also led the Canadian advertising industry’s trade association, the Institute of Communication Agencies (ICA), as its Chair for three years. During this time, Mr. Marchand sparked a rejuvenation of the ICA, which included the hiring of a new CEO, the launch of Canada’s first-ever Advertising Week, and a landmark new collective agreement with the Canadian actors’ guild, ACTRA.
Gregor Angus is President of EDC Europe. He first joined Cossette in 1990, returning in 2005 after a stint as President of BBDO Montréal to join Cossette’s executive team. Upon his return to Cossette, Mr. Angus’ first mandate was on Bell Canada, the agency’s most important client. It involved successfully winning back the English Canada creative assignment, responsibility for the senior client relationships and integration of the account’s work across five offices and six disciplines.
Soon after, Mr. Angus was given the added responsibility of overseeing, integrating and developing Cossette’s increasingly important UK operations, which comprise five agencies and 370 people.
In today’s industry and marketplace, managing the complexity of the creative and communication mix required for a successful strategy or campaign is a key challenge. At Cossette, Mr. Angus has led diverse teams with expertise in advertising, sales promotion, database marketing, direct marketing, public relations and sponsorship, branding, design, and digital marketing.
Martin Faucher is Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Vision7 International. He joined Cossette in August 2008. Prior to his appointment at Cossette, Mr. Faucher was Chief Financial Officer of iPerceptions, a public company and leading web-focused Voice of Customer analytics providers, and Chief Financial Officer of Microbridge Technologies Canada Inc., a private electronic calibration corporation. From June 1986 to January 2004, Mr. Faucher was Chief Financial Officer and co-owner of Kaydara Inc., a leading 3-D animation software company that was sold to Alias Systems Inc. in 2004.
He started his career in September 1992 with Ernst & Young, LLP, as an external auditor. In 1994, he was promoted to Project Manager in the Mergers and Acquisitions group at Ernst & Young, LLP, providing acquisition, divestiture, valuation, financing and reorganization services to leading international companies.
Mr. Faucher holds a Bachelor of Commerce degree in Finance and Management Science, obtained in 1991, when he graduated with the University Scholar and Faculty of Management Award designations from McGill University, as well as a diploma in Public Accountancy from McGill University obtained in 1993. Mr. Faucher has been a member of the Ordre des comptables agréés du Québec since 1995.
Claude Lessard is Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer of Vision7 International. Immediately prior to the recent formation of Vision7, Mr. Lessard was Chairman and CEO of Cossette, an organization he joined at its beginnings, in 1972.
Under the leadership of Mr. Lessard and a handful of colleagues, Cossette grew to become the largest communications company in Canada. Working from its strong Canadian base, the firm opened offices in the United States (New York and California) and the United Kingdom (London), giving it international reach. Vision7 is ranked among the top 25 marketing communications companies in the world, employing over 1,400 people on three continents, in offices in Canada and the United States, the United Kingdom, and China.
Today, with a track record of close to 40 years in the industry Claude Lessard is considered one of the most influential leaders in the communications industry.
Colin Schleining is President of EDC North America. Mr. Schleining joined Cossette in Vancouver in 1995 and has been overseeing Cossette’s operations in the United States, western Canada and China.
Mr. Schleining built the Cossette Vancouver office from a small 12-person shop into the market’s number one agency with a staff of 145. He orchestrated the launch and development of an integrated service offering in Vancouver including new services like digital, direct marketing, promotions and public relations.
Mr. Schleining led the acquisition and integration of a market-leading design and ethnic marketing practice and delivered network-leading performance in terms of revenue growth and profitability for 13 consecutive years. He oversaw the opening of Cossette’s Shanghai office in 2006 which has grown to a team of 25 specializing in design and branding for domestic clients.
Pierre Delagrave is a founding partner of Cossette and President, Media.
Mr. Delagrave has always been a pioneer, striving to be the first to define the future of the communications and marketing sector. His far-sightedness has always guided him when it comes to promoting marketing research.
He was the driving force behind many innovative Cossette initiatives in research and individual business units, including the launch of Fjord Interactive Marketing + Technology, which has become an industry leader. His keen interest in new technology inspired him to write Erase Everything and Start Over! in 2006, a book in which he reveals his observations on the the digital world and his vision for the future.
Among other things, Pierre Delagrave founded and has been on the board of directors of Conseil des Directeurs Médias du Québec, and has sat on the boards of COMB, Nadbank, BBM Surveys, and Centre d’études des médias, a research body with ties to Université Laval and Centre national de recherche scientifique. He is a member of the Canadian Media Directors' Council and Vice Chairman of Columbus Media International, an international network of media independents.
Montreal, October 19, 2011 – Leading PR agencies from four continents today joined forces to create a new global PR agency brand: Citizen Relations. This new agency has a full‐service offering and an existing international client base, being served both regionally and globally.
Montreal, March 10, 2011 – OPTIMUM Public Relations is pleased to announce the appointment of Marie-Claude Lavigne as Vice-President of Public Affairs at its Montreal office. She will join the team this April 4th.
Montreal, January 28, 2011 – Mr. Claude Lessard, Chairman and CEO of Vision7 International, is pleased to announce the appointment of Ms. Mélanie Dunn as Executive Vice-President and Managing Director of Cossette's Montreal office. As part of her new role, Ms. Dunn will manage the operations of the Montreal agency, now fully integrated under one name: Cossette
January 26, 2011, Toronto: Andrew Bergstrom, Cossette, Toronto Senior Vice-President and head of the agency's Nucleus strategic planning division for the past two years, has been promoted to Executive Vice-President and Managing Director.
Quebec City, November 16, 2010 - Cossette is reshaping its future. The highly successful marketing communications company is being restructured into two separate entities that will operate under a new holding company called Vision7 International. This move reflects the vision of a new generation of manager-owners committed to simultaneously pursuing the leadership of Cossette in Canada while accelerating the growth of its international activities, which already represent 45 % of its business.
Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer
claude.lessard@v7international.com
President and Chief Executive Officer of Cossette
brett.marchand@v7international.com
President of EDC North America
colin.schleining@v7international.com
President of EDC Europe
gregor.angus@v7international.com
President, Media
pierre.delagrave@v7international.com
Executive Vice-President Executive and Chief Financial Officer