CLIENTS:

The Bay has finally hired a new senior VP of marketing, following a search that began last spring. Neil Fedun, previously group VP, creative director with New York-based Federated Department Stores (owner of Macy’s) assumes the retailer’s senior marketing post May 1. His retail experience also includes stints with Woodward’s, Simpson’s, Zellers and the Hong Kong department store chain Lane Crawford.

Corby Distilleries has named Mike Minchin its new VP, marketing. Minchin, who replaces Joanne Bjarnason, has been with Corby’s parent company Allied-Domecq for about four years, most recently as global marketing director on whiskies. His priority, he says, will be focusing the distiller’s marketing efforts on its core brands.

Kia Canada has appointed John Wright its new VP, sales and marketing. Wright, who will also hold the title of COO with the Mississauga, Ont.-based automaker, has extensive sales and marketing experience, having held positions with Toyota, Fiat, BMW and Hyundai.

ECMarket, a Vancouver-based Internet business-to-business auction company, has named Janet Wood its new VP of sales and marketing. Wood comes to the position with 16 years of sales and management experience with IBM Canada.

Eli Lilly Canada has a new VP of marketing. Robert Schmid has been with the pharmaceutical company since 1985, working in both its U.S. and global operations. Before taking this new post, he was director of commercial affairs for CNS products at Lilly’s head office in the U.S.

AGENCIES:

Garry Lee is the latest senior executive to jump the Padulo Integrated ship. The former VP, group account director is now president of Toronto’s Cundari Integrated Advertising. He joins fellow Padulo alumnus Peter Day, who left the agency a few months ago to become Cundari’s executive VP, creative director.

Jim Herrler has been promoted to senior VP, managing director of Palmer Jarvis DDB’s Toronto office. Herrler, who joined the agency two years ago as VP and general manager, will be charged with building the business and developing new divisions designed to further PJDDB’s evolution into an integrated agency – among them, DDB Digital and DDB Response.

Mary Mills has joined Toronto-based Young & Rubicam as senior VP, strategic planning director. She comes from J. Walter Thompson, where she was VP, strategic planning director. Also new to Y&R is

Angela Mandrish, who assumes the post of VP, director interactive. Mandrish worked previously with New York-based interactive firm Studio Archetype (Sapient).

Diane Davy is the new president of Toronto-based NextMedia. Previously the publisher of Greey de Pencier (Owl) Books, Davy was hired for her experience in communications, children’s TV and new media.

MEDIA:

CHUM Television has promoted Stephen Tapp to VP, general manager of Citytv and CablePulse24. Tapp will also continue in his role as VP, general manager of ChumCity International, which oversees distribution of the broadcaster’s programming around the world. Maria Hale, meanwhile, has been appointed managing director of ChumCity Interactive. The former launch director for Excite Canada, she’ll be responsible for overseeing development of CHUM’s eight Web sites.

National Post Online has brought Marcie Sayiner on board as senior marketing and sales strategist. Sayiner, previously a consultant and media relations manager with the J.C. Williams Group, will oversee research and marketing efforts aimed at helping the daily’s Internet edition build its brand name.

Plesman Communications founder Paul Plesman has stepped down after more than 25 years at the helm of the high-tech trade publishing house. His decision comes in the wake of the company’s acquisition by Transcontinental Publishing last November. Established in 1974, Plesman Communications publishes such titles as Computing Canada and Computer Dealer News.

Shift magazine has appointed a new managing editor. Lisa Cindolo is former managing editor of Details magazine. Meanwhile, Shift is moving its online marketing manager to the Big Apple. Kevin Siu will head up non-traditional media marketing efforts for Shift’s various incarnations.

The Garden promotes two creative directors

ACDs Lindsay Eady and Francheska Galloway-Davis have taken over responsibility for day-to-day creative leadership at The Garden after being promoted to creative director roles.

The pair will also help develop the agency’s creative talent, formalizing mentorship and leadership activities they have been doing since joining the agency four and three years ago, respectively. In addition to creating the agency’s internship program, the pair have worked on campaigns for Coinsquare, FitTrack and “The Coke Challenge” campaign for DanceSafe.

Eady and Galloway-Davis will continue to report to The Garden’s co-founder and chief creative officer Shane Ogilvie, who is stepping back from daily creative duties to a more high-level strategic role, allowing him to focus on client relationships and business growth.

Naked Creative Consultancy names new creative and strategy leadership

Toronto’s Naked Creative Consultancy has hired Yasmin Sahni as its new creative director. She is taking over creative leadership from David Kenyon, who has been in the role for 10 years and is moving into a new role as director of strategy, leading the discipline at the agency.

Sahni is coming off of three years as VP and ECD at GTB’s Toronto office, where she managed all the retail, social and service creative for Ford Canada. She previously managed both Vice Media and Vice’s in-house ad agency Virtue.

Peter Shier, president of Naked, says Sahni’s hiring adds to its creative bench and capabilities, as well as a track record of mentorship, a priority for the company. Meanwhile, Kenyon’s move to the strategy side, he says, makes sense because of his deep knowledge of its clients, which have included Ancestry and The Globe and Mail.

Digital Ethos opens a Toronto office

U.K. digital agency Digital Ethos is pursuing new growth opportunities in North America by opening a new office in Toronto.

Though it didn’t disclose them, the agency has begun serving a number of North American clients, and CEO/founder Luke Tobin says the “time was right to invest in a more formal and actual presence in the area.” whose services include design, SEO, pay-per-click, social media, influencer and PR,

This year, the agency’s growth has also allowed it to open an office in Hamburg, Germany, though it also has remote staff working in countries around the world.

Moray Hickes was the company’s first North American hire as VP of sales, tasked with business development in the region.