Thursday 01 / May / 2025
Muscat: Coinciding with their fifteenth anniversary, Oman’s largest and most awarded design and communications firm has announced that its group companies, TBWAZeenah, Zeenah Media, Zeenah PR and Zeenah Events, will join together to form a new entity known simply as ‘Zeenah’.
According to group Managing Director and CEO Mohammad Al Farei, the new operating structure is driven by an increased demand from clients in Oman, and internationally, for an all-encompassing integrated approach to strategic communications, together with integrated branding, marketing and stakeholder engagement across all channels and platforms.
Zeenah is known for award winning work on some of the most prominent branding projects ever completed in Oman, as well as campaign advertising, digital prowess, and strategic corporate messaging. By regrouping as Zeenah, the agency aims to deliver a mega consultancy in Oman, that stands out from the crowd in terms of breadth of creative services to achieve the strategic goals of the client — regardless of the specific communication channels used.
The merger underlines the unified Zeenah operating philosophy, which aims to reframe the way companies and organisations communicate with stakeholders by using tailored messaging to inform specific audiences and geographies across a multitude of mediums and platforms.
Complementing the new approach, Zeenah has appointed a new general manager to helm Zeenah’s growth in Oman and the region. Ian Butlin has over 30 years of expertise as an international consultant, 10 of which have been spent in the Gulf.
Commenting on the appointment, Mohammad Al Farei said, “With such deep experience in running successful agencies, and with over seven years working as the Head of TBWAZeenah delivering some of Oman’s most successful marketing campaigns, Ian is the right person to lead the growth of Zeenah in the regional market.”
Regarding the company’s development, Ian Butlin notes, “This is a very exciting time for the agency, as we complete the process of transformation from a traditional group of communication companies to a digitally led integrated agency. Since it was first established in 2003, Zeenah has consistently delivered some of the most iconic brands and campaigns and ensured the highest results for our clients.
"Based on my experience in the region, generally, and in Oman, specifically, I believe that we are in the midst of dramatic shifts in the way clients can achieve their marketing and communications objectives, both in terms of approach and implementation. We plan to build on the successes of the agency over the last fifteen years and establish ourselves as a true centre of excellence in the region," he added.
Mohammad Al Farei added, "In the current climate, clients recognise that it’s difficult to manage multiple creative agencies and different suppliers in a way that can affect the quality of the final product. However, by unifying our businesses under the Zeenah moniker, we’re able to deliver a seamless integrated approach to all aspects of the marketing and communications mandate, while being able to offer greater value for our clients.
“In simple terms, our solution addresses these objectives by giving clients an integrated approach and plan, which delivers messaging and tactics across all the relevant touch points, presenting a consistent, unified brand—on the Web, on social media, via mobile devices, and through traditional brick-and-mortar channels, which remain strong here in Oman. The other major benefits clients receive are instant updates to ensure time and budgetary control on their various activities from one central source.” Mohammad Al Farei added.
Demonstrating its firm commitment to nurture and develop home-grown Omani talent in the arts and creative sector, the new Zeenah operating model sees talented Omanis assume leadership positions across all aspects of operations.
Commenting on the importance of promoting talented citizens within the creative arts sector, Mohammad Al Farei noted, “We place a great focus on cultivating the unique potential of creative and talented Omanis, together with guidance from international experts. This includes extensive peer-to-peer immersion in order to maximise knowledge sharing. This approach empowers our team with opportunity and leadership expertise, while delivering creative and effective solutions for our clients. Also, this aligns with our objective of growing a pool of experienced and creative employees and, in turn, supporting the development of the national workforce, who form over 50 per cent of our current staff.”
Operating from their central studio in Madinat Al Ilam in Muscat, Zeenah employs over 55 specialists who work as one to provide specialist services across multi- disciplines. Additionally, the firm boasts prestigious affiliations with some of the worlds’ leading firms for branding, international media relations and marketing communication fields.
Mohammad notes, "Clients are getting leaner and thinking more about their available resources, so a one size fits-all approach is a thing of the past. At the same time, they recognise that it’s logistically difficult to manage and coordinate a large number of creative agencies and suppliers and, importantly, they find it difficult to extract real value across multiple vendor platforms. For companies and organisations to remain relevant, it is important that any messaging strategy encompasses integrated perspective, which takes into account all stakeholders and all modern communication platforms.”
“Coinciding with our fifteenth anniversary, we are proud to introduce a new operating philosophy which aims to redefine the client experience and enhance creativity, responsiveness and turnaround times. In addition, synergies achieved through the new structure aims to maximise value for clients to easily manage the complete communications mandate. We, therefore, look at this unique engagement approach as the start of a new style of operations for everyone within the company, with the objective being client and employee satisfaction," he added.
