Multi-award winning agency, Fifth Ring Integrated Corporate Communications has taken the first steps of a strategic expansion into Asia with the opening of its debut Malaysian office in Kuala Lumpur.

Celebrating its 20th anniversary this year, Fifth Ring’s latest expansion highlights the increasing development opportunities across its key market sectors of energy, construction, property and financial services. It will be taking its integrated communications offering, which strategically combines business positioning, public relations, advertising, design & production and digital media & marketing, to the Malaysian market.

Group managing director, Clif Collier, believes that the expansion will not only open up new opportunities for Fifth Ring, but will also provide added value to its current clients. He said: “Our Dubai and Abu Dhabi offices have found over recent years that they have increasingly become a bridge into the Far East and with offices already in the major energy capitals of the world, including Houston and Aberdeen, the decision to have an office and full time team based there was the next logical step for us.

“Our areas of specialism: oil and gas, construction, the property industry and financial services, very much reflect the growth areas within the Malaysian market.”

Ian Ord, Fifth Ring’s business development director, said: “This exciting new venture will enable us to use our Kuala Lumpur office as the hub from which to conduct our business across both Malaysia and wider Asia. A local presence is a prerequisite in order to succeed, and we are confident that this expansion will lead to attractive opportunities for Fifth Ring, not only in procuring new business, but also in presenting new opportunities to our existing client base.

“The move demonstrates our active approach to fully internationalise Fifth Ring – a vision we set out in 2004 - by securing offices across the energy centres of the world. We constantly seek to raise the bar to an entirely new level.”

Fifth Ring’s new office is located in the heart of the city’s Golden Triangle and is led by senior communications consultant, Abi Firth, who is permanently based in Kuala Lumpur. Several of the company’s experts have been supporting her on the ground, with senior business positioning consultant, Jayne Craib, seconded on a long-term contract to the office in Kuala Lumpur, and the team are at final stage discussions with a number of companies.

The team will be recruiting locally across all areas of the company in Kuala Lumpur in order to facilitate the growth of the business and develop the local delivery team on the ground. With support from its UK, North America and Middle East teams, Fifth Ring has set high but realistic targets for its new regional office.

Collier added: “This is the latest step, but by no means the last, in fulfilling our vision of being the leading business to business specialists, with particular focus on energy, in the world. “

Tags: Fifth Ring Integrated Corporate