If you know Mira at all, you know she is all over the place. Maybe it's because she has spent most of her life in different countries, born and raised in Holland, then Spain – studying Spanish, working at the soccerworld championship, witness to the legendary game, Brazil-Italy, then finding herself in the middle of 20,000 Brazilians that wanted to leave Spain immediately after loosing the semi finals. Being arrested because Franco was still alive and she not knowing what it means to encounter a surly Guardia Civil instead of the kindly Dutch police.

So Mira quickly moved to Austria, a country she found reassuringly boring. Here she made few friends but good progress with her studies of economics and somehow wound up guiding 120 Dutch people around Vienna every week, earning loads of money as a tour guide until it was discovered that she lacked the one thing this job absolutely demands – a licence. A fact which nearly got her expelled from university. Instead she finished her study within a year.

Now holding an academic title, she walked up to the nearest advertising agency and offered her services for free. This puzzled the general managers a bit, but they agreed to give her a try. Until next day a former minister started calling the agency, asking for young, inexperienced Mira personally .Now the only thing they puzzled over was how to make her stay, and so she was made assistant to the general manager responsible for Coca Cola, L'Oreal, American Express and of course New Business.

She was doing quite a good job until one morning she opened the agency door at 7 o'clock in the morning to the executive president of the entire advertising group Interpublic:

Mister Bill Mackey

Two hours of international phone calls later, him talking business, she demonstrating flexibility and her command of several languages, the Big Cheese himself was taken with Mira and soon introduced her to his wife Louise. Even more he invited her to the McCann middle management seminar in the US, something normally reserved for senior employees after at least ten years at McCann. And off she went, 3 months of Chicago university with 30 selected multinational talents for an MBA training, then 1 week head- quarter Coca Cola in Atlanta, last but not least 4 weeks New York to work on a project for Nestle: how to enter the ground roast coffee market in the states. Working in groups of 4, her team won the final presentation to the top management of Nestle at the Hil- ton Hotel on 42nd street. A Japanese copywriter, an American account person and her doing the strategic planning - with an Italian art director for looks. Mira's part in the presentation was shutting off the lights in the room and reading a narrative describing the European coffee shop in detail, to educate the Americans present about the Europe- an coffee drinking culture. An idea successfully copied by Starbucks 5 years later.

After that Detroit with the American account person, hell on earth for Mira, because she and motor people don't seem to mix. However, she was identified as a high potential talent and sent to Sao Paulo Brazil, to work on American Express Coca Cola and Gene- ral Motors. In those days Brazil was still heaven, especially on assignment by a com- pany like McCann Erickson, including a 450 square meter apartment with guards and two employees, tennis court for 8 apartments plus swimming pool and 3 elevators. The Americans scared stiff and Mira in the vavelas looking for the voodoo specialist, feeling secure as she spoke Spanish and did not look like a terrified American.

But, alas, after two years her partner there turned out to fulfill the cliche of the superfi- cial American and Mira once again grew restless and returned to Europe. Just in time, too, as within two months her mother had suddenly died of cancer.

Back in Vienna she started with an international agency again, also worked in Paris and Barcelona for TBWA, until finally she met her husband, a freelance Art Director, very talented, highly decorated, but who still did not know the difference between gross and net income. They got married within 3 weeks (pure love) and had a baby 9 months later: their very own advertising agency.

Another year later they had their first real baby, 4.5 kilo heavy daughter Nada (Mira felt her first contractions while giving a presentation), three months after that, Mira got pregnant with their son Fabian. The couple’s agency won more awards than anybody else – Clio, Effie’s and Epicas – and didn’t worry one bit about all the warnings they were given by the specialists, that they should not work together. Instead they moved to the outskirts of Vienna into an Art Deco Villa with 3,000 square meters of park, so her husband Niki could play his congas (7) and paint, while Mira could run the agency from home. The price was high: 4,000 Euros rent. Soon Mira had to find another job, just to make up for the fixed costs.

Working for the fixed costs!

And so Mira was hired to run all the advertising of the food / beverage business of Kraft Foods in Central-Eastern Europe Middle East and Africa for Ogilvy Vienna, which ment 4 times a week on a plane, together with the CEO of Kraft visiting Bucharest, Istan- bul, Prag plus once a week London, which was worse, because she had to leave for the airport at 6 o’clock in the morning – after of course having prepared the clothes and breakfast for her children, then 8 and 9 – and returning on the last plane at midnight, just in time to check their homework.

But at least she loved the job, because she loved being in a different city every day, spea- king different languages and being – or was it just acting? – important! The job now paid for all of the familiy’s running costs. Besides, nobody wanted to have Mira exclu- sively as a mother and housewife anyhow. Three times a year she had to report to Philip Morris Corp in New York and that was the ultimate challenge, to sit in a conference room with two CEOs of Philip Morris, two powerful men who could have torn her apart any time – and let her feel it.

It became increasingly difficult for Mira to switch her tone and manner back and forth to suit both job and family, especially as she was running both. After 350,000 flight miles she resigned from her job so she could be there as her kids grew up, and to take on a new challenge as management supervisor for the Danone Account. Her bold career move did not stop her husband from disappearing without notice a year later, leaving her with the kids, the house and the agency. Once again Mira moved, once again to Vienna, once again she took the helm and restructured the agency, running it as a one-woman show, offering only marketing and brand strategy. In 2005 she got the chance to build up a brand together with Manfred Bodner – betandwin, which they rebranded into bwin and managed to turn into Europe’s leading online gaming brand. Stay tuned. Mira is still going strong.

Mag. Mira KlossZechner

Born: 6/26/56, Amsterdam/Holland.

Divorced mother of two children that study at the European university in Barcelona

Contact:

mira@wedobrands.com

mira@kloss-zechner.com

M:+4369910025635

Education:

Elementary School, Amsterdam 1962/1968

High School, Amsterdam 1968/1974

High School, Goethe Institute in Barcelona/Spain 1972/73

University of Barcelona 1974/1976

Philosophical Faculty

Degree: "Diploma de EstudiosHispanicos"

University of Vienna 1976/1982

Study of Economics and Commercial Science

Degree: mag.rer.soc.oec

Student activities:

Teasa, Congress Agency, Barcelona 1974/1975

Freelance Interpreter.

Austrian Chamber of Commerce, Barcelona 1976

Organization of Austrian presence at international fairs,

Coordination of bilateral commercial contacts.

Neckerman , Vienna 1980

Touroperator

Development and operation of a tourist package Vienna for Dutch tourist.

Languages:

Dutch, German, English and Spanish fluently.

Portuguese, French oral.

Employment:

Wedobrands 01/2012 ongoing

Brand consultant

clientssa Steinway, naturalcosmeticsand digital startups

Bwin.party digital entertainment 1.04 2011- ongoing

Consultant for Branddeveloment and Brand communication

-Development and positioning of the new corporate brand bwin.party

including corporate design

-Development of overall brand architecture within the joint entity bwin.party

-Repositioning of consumer brand Party Poker and complete re-design of website

-Ongoing campaign development for bwin

-Establishment of a new digital TV format (real time engine feed)

based on the in house developed sheeva technology

Bwin interactive entertainment AG 08/2006-04/2011

Director of Brand Management

-Lead of the overall Rebranding and Renaming Project: "betandwin to bwin"

-Development of the Transition Campaign :"a shortcut to new playing fields"

-Execution of all logo transitions (site, sponsoring,banners,offices, mobile)

-Redesign of main website and development of a new entry portal.

-Positioning of bwin as the leading consumer gaming brand in Europe (co validated by extensive qualitative consumer tracking).

-Development of extensive brand guidelines and manuals including company cultural guidelines as well as conducting brand academies and tonality workshops for employees

BetandWin Interactive Entertainment AG 01/2005 -08/2006

International Brand Manager

-Conducting of an international qualitative market research project to evaluate possible positioning concepts and to gather consumer insights in regard "betting and gamin

-Creation of a brand strategy to become a consumer brand versus a product brand only

-Conception and Development of Magic Moments of Sports Campaign as a TV Commercial, Documentation for European tv stations and as a Micro site platform with over 11 mio visits within 6 months.

-Development of global World Soccer Promo Campaign and implementation in 22 countries and adaptations thereof.

KlossZechner Advertising Agency, Vienna 1990- 06/2005

Founder and Managing Director

Founded 1.1.1990 with Creative Director NikiKloss.

Clients: Master Foods, Austrian State Lottery, Schering, Austrian Wine Council. BŠren Batteries. Furthermore a wide range of international projects for agency networks.

Various international and national nominations and awards.

Services rendered s.a. Marketing strategy planning, Media planning, Internet/e-commerce solutions. Corporate- Identity-Design, Graphic- and Screen design, Package design.

http://www.kloss-zechner.com

During the existence of the agency with 5 fixed employees I outsourced myself

to:

Ogilvy Central-and Eastern Europe Vienna/ London 02/1998-2000

Client Service Director and CEEMA coordinator for KJSuchard

Responsible for advertising within the Region Central-Eastern Europe -Middle East and Africa,of the following brands:

-Maxwell House- Coffee/ Poland/Greece/Turkey

-3 Bit, Forte, Prince Polo, Siesta - Chocolate Bars/ Eastern and Central Europe

-Figaro, Pavlides- Tablets in Central and Eastern Europe incl. Greece/ Turkey

-Tang (Powdered Soft drink) Launch in Poland, Romania, Turkey and Middle East.

-Development of Brand strategy /advertising idea development, Research brief and

coordination of the final execution of the campaign within the regions

-Execution and realization of global European campaign for 3 Bit and Tang

Young & Rubicam Vienna /2002-2004

Management Supervisor (DANONE)

Responsible for Marketing Strategies and communication of the following brands:

Actimel

Development of the health positioning and endorsement through the ministry of Health, which has led to one of the highest household penetrations in Europe and a extraordinary sales result in 2003.Development of new communication strategy in Germany.

Vitalinea

Strategic Repositioning of the light range and Launch of Vitalinea Drink

Topfencreme

Development of a first time local advertising campaign Topfencreme became the second largest growing monobrand in 2003.

Obstgarten

Strategic and research work together with international experts to relaunch and reposition Obstgarten in Germany.

Fruchtzwerge

Extensive international strategic and copy development work to redesign the brand within a new health conscious surrounding (sugar, artificial)

Activia

Positioning development and planning and preparation of launch 2004 in Austria

Austria 3/TBWA, Advertising Agency, Vienna 01/1988-12/1989

Client Service Director

- Reorganization and development of a whole new account service department

- Extension of the international business due to the alignment tothe TBWA-network

- International New Business activities within the TBWA-network

- Strategic planning and realization of the European Sear/Bull campaigns

- Launch campaign development for a new credit card for FreguentFlyers.(Airplus)

McCann-Erickson, Sao Paulo/Brazil 1986-1988

Account Supervisor

-Coordination for Coca Cola, L'Oreal and GM

-New Business activities in various areas

McCann-Erickson, Detroit, 01/1986- 11/1986

Account Supervisor

-Team project: Development of a global strategy-planning tool for the McCann Network

-conception of a CRM tool kit for General Motors.

McCann-Erickson, New York 1985/05-11

Project work with international colleagues for international clients:

-Development of marketing strategy for Nestle International:

"How to enter the US ground roast coffee market "

-Completed McCann-Erickson/Worldwide Middle Management Seminar at

University of Chicago. Areas of study included: Marketing strategy,

Direct-marketing, organizational -and financial management.

-Attendance of the global Marketing seminar of Coca Cola in HQAtlanta.

McCann-Erickson, Advertising Agency, Vienna 01/1982-05/1985

Assistant to CEO 1982

Assigned responsibilities for international coordination's, Drive Accounts and New Business

Account Executive, 1983/1984

Coca Cola, Greek Tourist Board, National Bread Council, Ministry of Health

Account Supervisor, 1984/1985

L'Oreal, Martini & Rossi, American Express

Expertise:

Brand Consulting

Brand and marketing Strategy Development

Strategy planning

Media planning and consulting

Internet/e-commerce solutions

Advertising Brief Development

Customer Relationship Marketing

Corporate- Identity and -Behavior Consulting