DUBAI —  Hanover Communications has expanded its operations in the Middle East with the opening of its third office in the region, in Riyadh.

The London-headquartered strategic communications firm has appointed Mohammed Al Maskati as managing director of its Saudi operations; the Riyadh office opens this week in addition to its bases in Dubai and Abu Dhabi.

Al Maskati (pictured, left) joins from Asda’a BCW, where he led the agency’s Saudi operations for five years. He previously worked with BLJ Worldwide in Qatar.

Hanover CEO Gavin Megaw told PRovoke Media: “Our ambition is for Hanover to be the most influential agency in Europe and the Middle East, and we cannot do that unless we are in the most strategically important and influential countries. Saudi is undoubtedly one of those, and we’re already doing a lot of business there, so this is a natural evolution.

“This is what our clients inside Saudi want, and being there on the ground is respectful of their ambition, which is why we’re doing it properly and have hired Mohammed, with more Saudi national hires to come. It’s also what international companies who are in Saudi want – I’ve lost count of the number of clients who are interested.”

Hanover’s Middle East managing director Jonty Summers (pictured, right), who now oversees a team of nearly 30 across all three offices, told PRovoke Media: “Saudi is seriously exciting. It’s a totally changed country since I first came here in 2010, when you look at how far it has come, in terms of women’s empowerment – with women now leading tourism, politics and finance – and the investment in infrastructure, tourism and sport. The energy is amazing as the population is so young – 63% of Saudis are under 30.

“Since the launch of Vision 2030 five years ago, Saudi government investment in projects that will transform society is astonishing. We’re a purpose-led business and that’s a good fit with a transformation programme that touches society, culture and economy – and is effectively about building a nation.”

Hanover, which opened its first Middle East office in Dubai in 2017, has been working with clients in Saudi Arabia since 2019. Summers said: “There’s probably no other PR agency with some of our specialist expertise in supporting mega projects. It’s also work that our people get excited about, from working on the new Neom giga-city around treatment of migrant workers – an extension of our Dubai Expo work – to Saudi Airlines business transformation and a whole programme of rebranding and digital comms for retail giant Cenomi.”

On his appointment, Al Maskati said: “I am excited to be joining Hanover Communications in this next phase of its growth trajectory, and I look forward to leading the expansion of the Agency’s footprint in Saudi Arabia. The Kingdom represents an extraordinarily dynamic and stimulating market in the communications sector, brimming with opportunities as its economy undergoes significant diversification.”

Hanover, which has 200 employees across its offices London, Brussels, Dublin, Dubai, Abu Dhabi and now Riyadh, works with healthcare, financial services, technology, media, energy, urban mobility, FMCG, retail, and sport clients across EMEA, offering strategic communications, crisis management, digital and corporate communications.