Talon expands in Europe with Germany MD Winfried Karst and new Frankfurt office

Talon Outdoor is boosting its efforts to become the market-leading global independent Out of Home agency by opening in Frankfurt with newly-appointed MD Winfried Karst. Karst is tasked with driving business in Germany, mainland Europe, and international spend from across Talon’s Plexus network.

Karst (below centre with group CEO Barry Cupples and managing partner Adrian Skelton) spent over 12 years at WPP’s Kinetic as co-founder and COO of Germany and Austria, and CEO of Switzerland. This was followed by senior management positions at Amscreen Europe, Goldbach and a four-year involvement in the Digital Signage Federation as European vice president. Most recently Karst was CEO of SK2 Solutions a consulting and media business focusing on the area of healthcare clients and digital OOH.

Karst is based in Frankfurt, in new offices in the heart of the Rhein-Main media and creative community alongside professional AdTech partners. He will work closely with Talon managing partner Adrian Skelton.

Talon group CEO Barry Cupples says: “I am delighted to announce the appointment of Winnie as the Manging Director of Talon in Europe. His extensive experience of the Out of Home market across Europe and more recently his focus on digital transformation and technology-led solutions, makes him ideally placed to take Talon’s Smarter as Standard philosophy to the heart of Europe.”

Karst says: “I am thrilled to be joining Talon and driving the next phase of growth across mainland Europe. This is an exciting time for the Out of Home marketplace. More and more clients are looking to take full advantage of innovation in the digital era, and Talon are in a great position in terms of our technological capabilities, audience insight, data intelligence and global footprint.

“As OOH campaigns become increasingly automated and programmatic there is a growing demand for dynamic and contextual creative. The expertise of Grand Visual, which Talon acquired during 2019, and their strong tradition in dynamic, creative optimisation services will also be a game-changer in domestic European markets.”

Germany address: Uhlandstr. 4, DE-65189 Frankfurt (Wiesbaden.)