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TRA appoints advisory board

The Research Agency has opened its first Australian office, appointed Mark Hobart as partner.

Wed, 11 Aug 2021

Independent research and insights agency, The Research Agency (TRA), has opened its first Australian office in Melbourne, appointed Mark Hobart as partner, and announced John Shanahan and Rob McLachlan as members of its Australian Advisory Board.

Founded in New Zealand in 2007 by Andrew Lewis and Amber Coulter, TRA is expanding in response to its growing roster of iconic, cross-category Australian and Trans-Tasman brands. 

TRA managing director Andrew Lewis said: “TRA is excited to bring our proposition and capabilities to Australia.    

“Because our Australian operation will be backed by the frameworks, tools, IP and capabilities of the New Zealand team, I am confident the combined strengths will build something truly different in this market,” he said.

Andrew Lewis.

Hobart has been appointed as TRA Partner in Melbourne following a 20-year career in senior insights, brand, and innovation roles. 

Before TRA, Mark was strategy director at The Lab, where he successfully led several high-profile strategy projects for leading Australian brands.  In 2021, Hobart co-authored a paper Beauty & The Beast: Kmart and the beauty category

He has worked with some of the world’s most recognisable technology, services and FMCG brands including Vodafone, Mastercard, Mars, L’Oréal, Shell, KraftHeinz, Fonterra, Skype, Orange, Samsung, Coca-Cola, and Kimberly-Clark. 


* To support its Australian expansion, Rob McLachlan and John Shanahan will join TRA co-founders, Amber Coulter and Andrew Lewis, on the Australian Advisory Board. McLachlan brings decades of experience in research from Kantar, WPP AUNZ’s research businesses, where he managed 60 creative, research and digital businesses, as well as AC Nielsen. Shanahan has more than 50 years' of international market research experience with Colmar Brunton, Nielsen and is the current owner of The Advantage Group.


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