Mr Chris Elkin

Originally from a small town in Northern Ireland, Chris cut his professional teeth in London and New York before moving to Singapore in 2000 then Vietnam in 2005. He is also a UK Chartered Marketer and Senior Design Thinking Instructor at the LUMA Institute.

These rich and varied experiences have given him a deep understanding of brand innovation and an acute awareness of how to get to the essence of a brand, product or service and bring it to life.

Through his career, he has worked with multidisciplinary teams across a variety of sectors to plan, execute and evaluate brand innovation, design thinking, packaging design, UX/UI design, tech and marketing services – and much more.

He also has a great passion for sharing his knowledge and insights. he believe everyone can innovate. He mentor start-ups at Saigon Innovation Hub, lecture at VietnamMarcom, and last, but certainly not least, as a proud member of the Saigon community, he donate his time to KOTO Foundation.

Chris is founder of Doodle Brands, a Vietnam-based design thinking brand innovation company in Ho Chi Minh City. Chris has over 20 years in the Southeast Asia Market and is a former WPP Group managing director of Red Brand Builders, Edge Asia and Aleph Vietnam. He has worked with a wide range of clients, gaining experience of people’s real problems in Banking, Insurance, Retail, Real Estate, FMCG, Dairy, Beer, Education, Health and Personal Care. Chris regularly instructs and facilitates design thinking through the LUMA Institute across Asia Pacific and donates his time speaking, mentoring and volunteering to help everyone be more innovative.