Wildstone doubles Australian Team

Wildstone has made three key appointments in its Australian team, with the company saying that early successes have allowed it to increase the size of its team to six.

Noel Cook, Managing Director for Wildstone Australia, says the new hires are evidence of the potential for the Wildstone model in the country, “Wildstone’s sale and leaseback model has done tremendously well in the company’s home market of the UK, and I’m really pleased it’s now been so well-received in the Australian market. Already, we’ve seen a large amount of interest in our unique proposition from independent media operators across the country. Despite beginning operations in the market only a year ago, we’ve already been able to grow the team significantly and attract really talented people into the business. I believe the business has a lot more growth potential in Australia.”

The new appointees are Scott Sargeant, the commercial director; Zaneta Pawlik, the strategy and operations director; and Crystal Ku, the senior legal counsel.

Sargeant joins Wildstone from oOh!media, where he spent more than 17 years. He began at the firm with a role in sales before moving into billboard product management and later into commercial negotiations. At Wildstone, he will focus on growing the company’s national billboard portfolio through acquisitions, partnerships and the strategic digitisation of existing sites.

Pawlik also boasts significant out-of-home credentials, having previously worked for both oOh!media and Primesight (now Global). Before joining Wildstone, she was Media, Product and Client Success Leader for APAC for Dentsu. In her new position, she will focus on driving sustainable growth and operational excellence and aligning the local operations with Wildstone’s global activities.

Ku brings more than 12 years of legal real estate experience to the team, with her most recent role as Senior Legal Counsel at Aqualand Australia. She has also previously held positions at Herbert Smith Freehills and Lendlease. Ku has taken on all Australia-related legal work from the head office team in the UK.

“I have always been passionate about the Australian OOH market. Having gained significant experience working for the country’s largest player, I'm excited to apply my expertise to further grow digital infrastructure across Australia in partnership with a multitude of media operators of all sizes,” says Sargeant. 

Pawlik adds, “Wildstone’s vision aligns strongly with my own values around innovation, collaboration and purpose-led work. The chance to work alongside a respected leader like Noel Cook in an environment that values both ambition and integrity was inspiring. I knew this would prove a great opportunity to help build and transform a business during a pivotal stage.”

Crystal Ku says, “As the first legal hire in Australia, my main goal is to help the team achieve its goals; my aim is to free up the deal team so they can actually focus on the deals. Since moving to in-house roles, I’ve really enjoyed getting closer to the business side of things and I’m excited to now be joining a company that is in such a rapid period of expansion.”

Wildstone operates various business models worldwide, the most common being the sale and leaseback model. This involves Wildstone buying classic assets from operators, typically because there’s a desire to digitise these sites, but the capital investment required is more than operators wish to allocate. After upgrading the infrastructure, it then leases those same sites back to the original operator, which continues to manage media sales. Wildstone's investment enables operators to release capital and also gain access to digital inventory. The company has already entered into two such deals in Australia, with talks underway about several future acquisitions.