Establishing an Asia-UK network with owner-led offices in Shanghai, Singapore, and London 

From left to right: Charissa Guan, Founder & Managing Partner, bSIDE (Singapore); Leon Guan,
Founder & Managing Partner, Marketing Artist (China); and Alisia Lewis, Travel Director, Sauce
Communications (UK)

SINGAPORE, 13 DECEMBER 2023 — A new partnership between bSIDE, Marketing Artist, and Sauce Communications brings together the expertise and creativity of three industryleading agencies, aiming to reshape the future of travel, hospitality and lifestyle marketing and communications. Existing and future clients can leverage the deep market expertise and influential network of all three agencies with a wider range of services and an expanded international reach across offices in Shanghai, Singapore, and London.

As the travel and hospitality sectors aim to recover and evolve against a backdrop of global inflation—resulting in shifts in consumer behaviour and preferences—demand has increased for strategic and creative communications that can effectively position brands and drive businesses for the long haul. China, Singapore, and the UK consistently rank among the world’s most well-travelled with some of the highest outbound expenditure. Sauce Communications’ and bSIDE’s home base of London and Singapore, respectively, also came in at #10 and #11 on Euromonitor’s Top 100 Cities Destinations Index 2023, which compares cities using 55 metrics across six categories: economic and business performance, tourism performance, tourism infrastructure, tourism policy and attractiveness, health and safety, and sustainability; signalling greater opportunity for industry players to invest in these key markets.

On the partnership, Charissa Guan, Founder & Managing Partner, bSIDE, shares: “We have found incredible synergy with Marketing Artist and Sauce Communications—from our insight and culture-led integrated communications approaches to the deeply entrepreneurial and fiercely independent ways of working that are embedded in each of our agencies. Our founder-led practices allow our clients to effectively tap into cross-market senior counsel with teams that are agile and creative.”

Founded in 2022, bSIDE has quickly built a reputation for its highly strategic and creative approach to communications with its roots in the travel, hospitality, and lifestyle sectors. Their nimbleness and tenacity have won over global heavyweights and independent brands alike, including Millennium Hotels & Resorts, Pullman Singapore Hill Street, Else Retreats, Les Amis Group, and The Lo & Behold Group.

Leon Guan, Founder and Managing Partner of Marketing Artist, 椰墨, says, “This partnership is a long-planned initiative, and I am pleased to formally announce it. bSIDE, Sauce Communications, and Marketing Artist have always been trusted collaborators, and our open and sincere working style has fostered a deep familiarity between our agencies—this alignment plays a crucial and complementary role in our collaboration. Singapore, London, and Shanghai, hubs for luxury hotels and high-end lifestyle brands worldwide, have always been extremely competitive in captivating global audiences. Together, we aim to provide a new service experience and deliver significant results for the marketing of high-end travel and
lifestyle brands in these key source markets.”

Marketing Artist specialises in promoting upscale lifestyle, travel, and tourism brands. The agency is known for its business results-oriented approach to brand marketing—integrating a sales-driven perspective to demonstrate the value of marketing and communications, allowing them to achieve more effective and holistic marketing outcomes. Their client roster runs the gamut from Hilton, Keppel, Thai Airways to Givenchy, Trisara and Kimpton Kitalay Samui.

Alisia Lewis, Travel Director, Sauce Communications, says, “We are thrilled to be announcing our partnership with bSIDE and Marketing Artist. Asia is increasingly becoming a key market for our clients; it is imperative for Sauce Communications to have trusted partners in both the Chinese and Singapore markets to work alongside, and both bSIDE and Marketing Artist share our vision for creating thought-provoking campaigns that work on a global stage. We look forward to continuing to work as partners on global briefs to create an effective solution for our clients seeking exposure and brand recognition in Asia.”

Founded in 2001 by Jo Barnes and Nicola Hancock, Sauce Communications has successfully cemented its position as one of UK’s leading PR agencies, expanding its travel, restaurant, and brands divisions, in addition to launching social media agency FEED in 2020, and talent management arm Hot Sauce. Since the start of 2023, the agency has picked up new clients including The Standard, 2-Michelin starred restaurant with rooms Moor Hall, luxury restaurant group Bagatelle, Rathfinny, & Monte-Carlo Société des Bains de Mer.

ENDS

Press Contacts:
Singapore & Southeast Asia: Charissa Guan, charissa@bside.agency
China: Leon Guan, lg@marketingartist.cn
UK & Europe: Alisia Lewis, alisia@saucecommunications.com