WFA celebrates 70th anniversary with ‘70 in 70’ initiative

The World Federation of Advertisers (WFA) is celebrating this year the 70^th anniversary of the Stresa Resolution, which laid the foundations of the International Union of Advertisers Associations (IUAA), the forerunner of the WFA, and is acknowledging 70 people who have helped build the organisation.

Unveiled at WFA Global Marketer Week in Istanbul, the 70 in70 initiative seeks to celebrate the industry professionals who have most contributed to the organisation’s stature and profile, starting with Count Metello Rossi di Montelera – of Martini & Rossi fame – who was heading the Italian advertisers’ association when the IUAA was launched.

The list covers core priority areas for the WFA and its members, including Marketing, Media, Sourcing, Policy, National Associations, Responsibility and Insights, as well as long-standing Partners of the WFA. The people honoured can be seen here.

“Much has changed in the last 70 years but one thing has remained constant: people make the difference. I’ve always been profoundly impressed and humbled by this deep personal commitment. It has been hard to identify just 70 people because so many professionals have made an amazing contribution to the success of WFA, so I want to thank every member and partner over the last seven decades for their contribution to WFA’s success” said Stephan Loerke, CEO of WFA.

The unveiling of 70 in 70 comes as the WFA gathers in Istanbul for its annual global event, including the Annual General Meeting, where a new Executive Committee is approved by its members. The 2023-2024 WFA leadership includes new Vice-Presidents for Africa and the Middle East as well as new representatives from Best Buy, Coty, IBM, Kellogg’s, PepsiCo, P&G, Primark, Vodafone and Tata.

Mounir Jazouli, Chief Communication & Institutional Relations Officer at Bank of Africa and a former president of the Moroccan National Advertiser Association becomes Vice-President for Africa, while Aishwarya Nambiar, Global Brand Lead at Etihad, becomes Vice-President for the Middle East. Both will sit on the Executive Committee.

The new members of the Executive Committee are:

• Liliya Rechitsky, Senior Director of Procurement at Best Buy
• Nicolas Comestaz, Vice President Global Media, Communication & Performance at Coty
• Tracy Allery, Global Category Lead at IBM
• Charisse Hughes, SVP, Chief Brand & Advanced Analytics Officer at Kellogg's
• Jane Wakely, Chief Consumer & Marketing Officer at PepsiCo
• Michelle McEttrick, Chief Customer Officer at Primark
• Taide Guajardo, Chief Brand Officer – Europe at Procter & Gamble
• Harish Bhat, Brand Custodian at Tata Group
• Anne Stilling, Global Director Brand and Media at Vodafone
• Jan Morten-Drange, CEO at ANFO, the Norwegian Advertisers Association

The full list of ExCo members can be seen here: wfanet.org/executive-committee