News Australia adds two senior industry appointments

News Australia has appointed Gerard Richardson as National Head of Retail and Luke Haynes as Industry Director for Sport and Entertainment.

Richardson will lead News Australia’s retail category strategy, while Haynes will oversee category strategy and growth partnerships across sport, entertainment, streaming and gaming.

Senior appointments

News Australia General Manager, Industry Specialisation Renee Sycamore said the appointments would strengthen the company’s industry expertise.

“Our clients are navigating more complexity and competition than ever before. To help them grow, we need to truly understand what is shaping their industries, not just react to what is happening now. When that expertise is embedded in the relationship, clients get a partner who anticipates what’s coming, not just one who executes a brief. These appointments bring fresh thinking and new energy to two of our most important categories.”

Gerard Richardson joins from Adore Beauty

Richardson joins News Australia after more than a decade working across the ANZ market.

He most recently served as Head of Commercial Partnerships and Retail Media at Adore Beauty, where he built and scaled its retail media business. In the role, Richardson worked with brands including L'Oréal, Estée Lauder and COTY.

Luke Haynes joins from M&C Saatchi

Haynes spent nine years at M&C Saatchi Sport and Entertainment, most recently as Group Lead, Cultural Strategy.

He worked on campaigns for Woolworths, CommBank, Origin Energy and Optus across sponsorships including the FIFA Women's World Cup, Australian Olympic Team and Cricket Australia.

Haynes previously spent five years at RPM in London, where he managed Sky's partnership with British Cycling and Team Sky.

Richardson and Haynes join News Australia’s existing industry leads Emily Ross for travel, Taylor Oberman for finance and essential services, and Brittany Daniel for health, wellbeing and beauty.

The appointments are effective immediately.