Kunene-Msimang is a brand and marketing strategist who has spent the last 18 years putting the South African Tourism Sector on the local and international map.

In 1997, she became the first black person and woman to manage an airport in South Africa, namely George Airport, representing the Airports Company South Africa (ACSA) on local and regional tourism bodies.

She aimed to help secure South Africa’s competitive advantage as a tourism destination by introducing new Hotel Star Grading Criteria as the CEO of the Tourism Grading Council and was the founding chairperson of South Africa’s Tourism Awards – the Lilizela Tourism Awards.

As a South African agency in its 19th year of business, Kunene-Msimang joins Edgar Nelson (MD: production) and Kim Nelson-Eckoldt (MD: client services) as a 31% shareholder of icandi CQ.

With a list of clients that include Arrowhead Properties, GE Healthcare, Investec, KFC, Liberty, Nedbank and Tshikululu, Kunene-Msimang will aim to lead the agency’s  growth strategy, which includes expansion into Africa and the Tourism Sector.

Kunene-Msimang's appointment will focus on new business development and supporting the team in their continued focus on building brands through strategic communication.

"We are thrilled to have Thembi on board. Her vast experience as a brand building and marketing specialist complements our leadership team and icandi CQ’s niche areas of expertise, which aims to build brands through effective communication and employee engagement (along with the strategically driven, full-service communication, marketing, and brand consultancy services we provide). We are confident that Thembi will not only be adding creative intelligence to our brand, but to our clients’ brands too," says Nelson-Eckoldt.

"Finding this unique investment opportunity in icandi CQ was a great joy for me, given the natural fit in terms of the shared passion for branding, marketing, and communication as well as the work ethic, the strategic outlook and, of course, the dynamic team that has grown the icandi CQ brand over the past 19 years," adds Kunene-Msimang.

Kunene-Msimang concludes, "Taking icandi CQ to its next level of growth is going to be an exciting path for us, given all the opportunities we have identified already. We look forward to forging successful and long-lasting partnerships on the continent."

For more information, visit www.icandicq.co.za. You can also follow @icandiCQ on Twitter.