Affinnova Launches European Expansion

Names Innovation Expert Jerome Simulin to Lead European Effort

Jerome Simulin, Senior Vice President of Europe for Affinnova (Photo: Business Wire)

WALTHAM, Mass.--()--Affinnova, the global leader in marketing innovation software and services, today announced that it is expanding European operations by opening offices in France and Germany to supplement its staff in Switzerland and the United Kingdom. To support this expansion, the company has appointed Jerome Simulin to head Affinnova’s European effort from the company’s new office in Paris, France.

“Since 2004, European companies have reached out to us to help bring their concepts and products to market faster and with more immediate impact,” said Waleed Al-Atraqchi, President and Chief Executive Officer of Affinnova. “These clients have asked us to expand our presence in Europe to help them accelerate marketing innovation.”

“Marketing technology, market research and great people are the foundation of our success,” continued Al-Atraqchi. “The addition of Jerome to our already successful European team allows us to support a significantly larger client base and demonstrates Affinnova's commitment to strategic growth in Europe, where business is up 50% year over year.”

As Senior Vice President of Europe for Affinnova, Jerome Simulin, together with his team, will develop new accounts and deliver high-impact business results to existing clients, including AB InBev, Bayer, Danone, GlaxoSmithKline, Kraft, Mars, MasterCard, Nestle, Procter & Gamble, Unilever and Walmart. He will also be responsible for expanding Affinnova’s European offices with new staff, including research directors and client services managers.

“I have seen the difficulty marketers face due to shortening phase-gate processes,” said Jerome Simulin. "Due to the highly competitive nature of European markets, brand managers and consumer insight managers are under huge pressure to respond quickly, yet they need time to develop concepts with the greatest chance for success. This is stressful. Affinnova resolves this by providing for fuller generation and examination of all possible winning concepts faster, reducing test iterations. Affinnova's IDDEA® platform has me excited about how we help our clients solve this problem.”

"When I looked at the validation, that 64% of optimized concepts outperform competitors, compared to 22% of pre-optimized concepts, I saw how Affinnova develops concepts that are more robust, last longer and do better."

About Jerome Simulin

Jerome Simulin has more than 20 years of experience in strategic consulting, marketing research and sales for leading FMCG and Life Sciences companies. He is an expert in new product testing and forecasting, innovation, brand management and marketing ROI. Simulin’s strong reputation and experience in Europe will help accelerate Affinnova’s European efforts.

Prior to joining Affinnova, Jerome Simulin headed his own strategic marketing consulting firm advising leading companies in consumer healthcare. Previously, he was Vice President EMEA at Nielsen BASES, where he led new account efforts. Prior to Nielsen, he was Deputy General Manager at Ipsos Novaction & Vantis, helping companies improve their innovation and brand strategies. Jerome graduated from EPSCI, the ESSEC French business school specializing in international business.

About Affinnova

Affinnova’s solutions enable marketers to develop better performing products, messaging and designs. Affinnova’s patented technology identifies the concepts with the greatest market potential from an unprecedented range of options. Global Fortune 500 companies including Walmart, Microsoft and Citibank, depend on Affinnova to deliver accelerated launch timing and higher success rates. For more information, please visit www.affinnova.com.

Photos/Multimedia Gallery Available: http://www.businesswire.com/cgi-bin/mmg.cgi?eid=6762039&lang=en

Contacts

MoreInk PR
Martha Popoloski, 781-405-8328
mpopoloski@affinnova.com
or
Jerome Simulin
jsimulin@affinnova.com

Release Summary

AFFINNOVA LAUNCHES EUROPEAN EXPANSION Names Innovation Expert Jerome Simulin to Lead European Effort

Contacts

MoreInk PR
Martha Popoloski, 781-405-8328
mpopoloski@affinnova.com
or
Jerome Simulin
jsimulin@affinnova.com