International dating app Tinder has appointed Kristen Hardeman as the country manager of Australia, who will be responsible for overseeing marketing operations in Australia.
Prior to joining Tinder, Hardeman led consumer marketing for Intel Australia, where she was responsible for the marketing initiatives and strategic partnerships with the Sydney Opera House and Vivid Sydney.
“As a brand that is at the intersection of culture and dating, we were eager to find someone who understands the mindset of the Gen Z audience and who can help us reach them in an authentic way,” Tinder CMO Jenny Campbell said.
“Kristen’s background in creating unique experiences and strategically marketing to new audiences for the Australian market made her the perfect choice for the country manager role at Tinder.”
Hardeman also has extensive experience leading accounts at creative agencies in Sydney and New York including The Monkeys, Saatchi & Saatchi and JWT.
She worked across a broad range of sectors from technology to entertainment, banking, not-for-profit, FMCG and new business, and will be bringing this experience with her at Tinder.
“When Tinder entered the market six years ago, it completely changed how people meet and date all over the world,” Hardeman said.
“I’ve been able to see first-hand how it has impacted social culture here in Australia and I couldn’t resist the opportunity to join such a trailblazing brand.”
Most recently, Pedestrian TV became the Australian sales house for Tinder and now leads conversations with brands looking to advertise within the dating app.
Tinder is partly an ad-funded platform with a significant portion of its users using the free version of the app.
The integration with Pedestrian is the first time Tinder has had a local partnership and includes branded profiles, sponsored messages, native display, native video, polls and quizzes.
The moves by the dating app signal further expansion into the APAC region, which also included the hires of Hiroko Kujime and Giuliano Octavianos as marketing and business development managers to lead its growth efforts in Japan and Indonesia respectively.
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