Signature 40 – the region’s new common language: An interview with founders Márton Nagy and Ádám Vaszary on the new dimension of the Signature Platform in 2026

This article is available for reading in Trade magazin 2025/12-2026.01

What does it mean to you that Signature 40 is going to become a regional format from next year?

Márton Nagy
founder
Signature Platform

Márton Nagy: – Since the launch of Signature 40 we have known that we wanted to build not just a top list, but a real value system: an objective, comparable recognition based on professional performance. There is no system in Central Europe that truly evaluates marketing and communication professionals objectively, based on real KPIs.

Ádám Vaszary
dfounder
Signature Platform

Ádám Vaszary: – Signature 40 was never “just a list”. We have always been building a professional infrastructure: with thematic qualifiers, harmonious average values, auditable scoring and qualification minimums. This methodology can now be exported.

When did you decide that Signature 40 should also be launched in a regional format from 2026?

VÁ: –When we saw that that the scoring system works, the thematic lists work, the jury of 80-90 people is stable, the qualification minimums really filter – and most importantly: the profession has accepted and uses Signature.

What will this expansion look like in 2026? Will the same system really be used at the regional level?

NM: – Not only the same, but even a little stricter. The Hungarian model is proof that performance-based ranking works and that there is no need for “celebrity lists”.

VÁ: – Each country will retain its own Signature 40 list – it is just that they will all follow the same standard.

Isn’t there a danger that the region will “suppress” the domestic list?

NM: – Quite the contrary. The strength of Signature 40 has always been that it rewards real professional performance rather than trends or popularity.

VÁ: – Until now we have set the standard in Hungary. From now on a region will use the same standard. This is a great responsibility, but also an even greater opportunity.

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The winners of Signature 40

3. Krisztina Kérdő

retail trade marketing manager – Zwack Unicum Nyrt.

Nomination list: Hungary

Krisztina Kérdő joined the marketing team at Zwack Unicum in 2001. During the first ten years of her career she worked with the company’s own brands, and she considers the five years she spent with Unicum to be the most formative. Krisztina is responsible for Zwack’s entire portfolio in the retail channel, promoting the brand’s point-of-sale communication.

7. Belayane Najoua

global PR & communication lead – Munch

Nomination list: PR

Najoua Belayane is a communications specialist and PR strategist. She has built the global PR, partnership and automated marketing strategies for five Munch brands (Munch, Munch Market, Munch Club, Nesnezeno CZ, Bonapp RO) and supported the PR communications of numerous brands with her own boutique agency, which is called Agence Najoua.

9. Szabina Mitter

senior brand activation strategist – Yettel Magyarország Zrt.

Nomination list: Brand

Szabina Mitter has been working in marketing communications for more than a decade, mainly in the telecommunications and FMCG sectors. Her work focuses on integrated brand building, human-centred storytelling and activities that support business KPIs. She has led campaigns that haven’t only mobilised consumers, but also won industry awards.

10. Szonja Bernát

head of PR CEE – Antenna Entertainment

Nomination list: PR

Szonja Bernát has more than eleven years of agency and client-side PR experience. She joined Antenna Entertainment from ACG, where she had worked with brands such as Zwack, Heineken, UPC, Ferrero, újHÁZ, UNICEF and the Hungarian Interchurch Aid – and had been involved in several award-winning campaigns.

11. Mónika Löschnigné Németh

retail segment marketing manager – K&H Bank Zrt.

Nomination list: Brand

Mónika Löschnigné Németh has more than twenty-five years of market experience. She takes projects from concept through strategy to implementation. She has been involved in several award-winning initiatives. Her work is characterised by customer focus, curiosity and openness. Mónika believes in win-win collaborations based on mutual trust.

14. Éva Gila

marketing manager – Dél-100 Kft.

Nomination list: FMCG

Éva Gila has more than twenty years of marketing experience. Her career includes brand management, image change, campaign and crisis management. She considers the customer experience in physical and online spaces to be of key importance. Éva believes in resilience and that different generations can achieve common goals by working together. 

15. Judit Hellinger

16. Anna Pókecz

head of marketing – Cerbona Élelmiszergyártó Zrt.

Nomination list: SME

Anna Pókecz currently leads the marketing and product development team for the Cerbona and Boci brands. She has been involved in several successful campaigns and product launches, which have contributed to sales result improvements and brand awareness growth. Anna believes that marketing is also about creating business value.

17. Zsanett Kovács

marketing manager – Móra Könyvkiadó Zrt.

Nomination list: Hungary

Zsanett Kovács holds degrees in teaching and economics. As the head of Móra’s marketing team, she plays a key role in shaping the marketing communications of the domestic children’s book market. Zsanett is a regular lecturer at several teacher training institutions in higher education

.

18. Árpád Levente Biró

director of marketing and communication – Örkény István Színház Nonprofit Kft.

Nomination list: SME

Árpád Levente Biró is the director of marketing and communications at the Örkény István Theatre in Budapest. As literary secretary at the Szigligeti Theatre in Oradea, he participated in the organisation of the HolnapUtán, Infinite Dance and Fux festivals, was a jury panel member in a drama competition and wrote a book on the history of puppetry in Oradea. 

19. Bence Kusicza

campaign manager – Yettel Magyarország Zrt.

Nomination list: Brand

Bence Kusicza is the campaign manager at Yettel. In 2023 he was driven by his passion for marketing to join the Yettel team, as a member of the marketing communications team in a junior position. In 2024 he was promoted to campaign manager and has since been involved in creating several flagship campaigns and exciting extensions. 

20. Bernadett Gál-Strausz

marketing specialist – dm Kft.

Nomination list: FMCG

At dm Bernadett Gál-Strausz is currently responsible for marketing support for store openings, the comprehensive organisation of external events, and ambient and radio campaigns. She participated in the renewal of the active beauty loyalty programme and has a multifaceted insight into marketing and operational processes.

22. Máté Papp

senior PR manager – HELL ENERGY Magyarország Kft.

Nomination list: FMCG

Máté Papp began his career at pharmaceutical company EGIS Gyógyszergyár, where he gained insight into the world of corporate communications. He joined the HELL PR team as a junior manager in 2020 and today he is responsible for shaping strategic communications, building reputation, and strengthening the domestic and international presence of brands.

23. Dóra Vorigin

PR & corporate communications team lead –BioTechUSA

Nomination list: PR

Dóra Vorigin began her career at Well PR, where she worked with major brands such as Coca-Cola, Pöttyös, Dreher, Unicum and the Hungarian Red Cross. Since March 2024 she has been the PR and corporate communications team lead at BioTechUSA. Under her leadership the company finished third in the Next Generation PR World Cup competition. 

24. Bence Borszéki

brand manager – HELL ENERGY Magyarország Kft.

Nomination list: FMCG

As an international brand manager, Bence Borszéki oversees the ATL, BTL and innovation strategies, portfolio optimisation and product development of two beverage categories, HELL Ice Coffee and FloeWater, in more than thirty countries. He uses insight-based decisions to increase sales, market share and brand awareness.

25. Réka Forgách

brand manager – Essity Hungary Kft.

Nomination list: FMCG

Réka Forgách has been working in marketing and brand building for fifteen years. She is the brand and product manager for the Zewa brand at Essity. Réka is responsible for brand communication, product launches and strategic planning. She has great experience in strategic thinking, creative campaign planning and integrated brand communication. 

26. Márta Pálosi

senior communication expert – Erste

Nomination list: PR

Márta Pálosi began her career at the Open Communications PR agency in 2006, where she worked with brands such as Nokia, IKEA and Procter & Gamble. She joined Erste in 2017, first performing internal PR tasks and then doing external PR communications, including press relations, smaller events and coordinating brand-compatible collaborations. 

27. Lívia Brandl-Popov

marketing director – Alföldi Tej

Nomination list: Hungary

Lívia Brandl-Popov is an economist and marketing director at Alföldi Tej, with more than ten years of experience in the Hungarian FMCG sector. She manages the strategy and communications for the Alföldi Tej, Magyar Tej, Riska and Pure Milk brands. Her strength lies in her ability to achieve growth and innovation even with a limited budget.

28. Orsolya Verik

group manager of content management/senior consultant – Yettel Magyarország Zrt.

Nomination list: Brand

Orsolya Verik began her career as a marketing manager at White Hair Salon (2015–2016), then continued as a social media manager at Wizz Air (2016–2019). She joined Yettel in 2019 as content marketing and social media group manager. Since 2025 she has been working as the head of the content management group and as a senior consultant.

29. Eszter Danyi

Central Europe employer brand manager – Tesco

Nomination list: Brand

Eszter Danyi began her career as an intern at MagNet Bank in 2016 and now manages brands in three countries as a regional manager of Tesco. She has worked with brands such as KFC, Tesco and Tata Consultancy Services, implementing creative and measurable brand campaigns at a regional level.

30. Csaba Dániel Madar

social media and digital content producer – Yettel Magyarország Zrt.

Nomination list: Brand

Csaba Dániel Madar joined Ogilvy & Mather in 2016 as a social media specialist, while also building up a significant following as a presenter on the ARTBite YouTube channel. In 2019 he started working for the Republic Group. He went to the client side in 2020: today he is content producer at Telenor/Yettel. 

31. Vivien Heitz

senior store marketing manager – Yettel Magyarország Zrt.

Nomination list: Brand

Vivien Heitz not only delivers campaigns, but also creates value-added solutions on a strategic and creative basis. Her many years of experience at Yettel range from brand building to trade-focused activities, giving her a complex view of communication challenges. She strives to ensure that communication not only works, but also has an impact.

32. Éva Molnos

senior brand and retail activations manager – Yettel Magyarország Zrt.

Nomination list: Brand

Éva Molnos started her career at the Bonafarm Group, where she was responsible for promoting and building sales of Pick brands. From 2022 she led Yettel’s store marketing communications, sales promotion activities and customer experience projects. Since 2024 she has been working on building brand awareness, including the Sziget Festival collaboration. 

33. Gitta Árr

brand manager – HELL ENERGY Magyarország Kft.

Nomination list: FMCG

Gitta Árr’s work involves planning active ATL and BTL campaigns in more than 30 countries and doing portfolio management. Creating and implementing global communication strategies, continuously monitoring market data and results, and portfolio and innovation management are all part of her daily routine.

34. Alexandra Danicska

trade marketing manager – HELL ENERGY Magyarország Kft.

Nomination list: Hungary

Alexandra Danicska began her career in finance at Unilever in 2017, then switched to marketing two years later. She joined HELL in 2022: initially responsible for the operational support of the entire Hungarian sales team, but now she coordinates global advertising material procurement for all countries – from key rings to multi-pallet installations.

35. Tamás Bozó

sales manager – Gof Hungary Kft.

Nomination list: Hungary

Tamás Bozó has been working in the FMCG sector for more than 25 years, in both the food and non-food areas. As sales manager at Gof Hungary Kft., he is responsible for the development and domestic market launch of the Avena GoFit brand. His work is characterised by thorough market knowledge, strategic thinking and a value-creating approach. 

36. Laura Buza

marketing campaign manager – Rossmann Magyarország Kft.

Nomination list: FMCG

Laura Buza has more than ten years of marketing communication experience on both the agency and client sides. She has been the marketing campaign manager at Rossmann Magyarország since 2022, where she is responsible for social media, PR and campaigns. Her work is characterised by strategic thinking, creativity and a business mindset.

39. Orsolya Hladics

deputy group head of communication – 4iG Nyrt.

Nomination list: Hungary

Orsolya Hladics is responsible for the external, internal and corporate communications of the group’s domestic subsidiaries, including One, One Solutions, 4iG SDT, 4iG IT and the emerging infrastructure company. Her areas of expertise are brand strategy, integrated B2B communications and positioning in a technological environment.”

40. Zsuzsanna Papp

marketing manager – Piroska Szörp – Szikrai Borászati Kft.

Nomination list: Hungary

Zsuzsanna Papp has been working in sales and marketing for more than thirty years: in the first decades she was motivated by increasing sales, but today she is more interested in long-term brand building. What she finds exciting about marketing is how one can influence consumers and how they decode this influence.

Signature 40 is a professional filter

We are proud to have been a partner of the Signature 40 talent competition for four years now. Signature 40 is a list of the most promising professionals in the Hungarian marketing and communications industry. Actually it isn’t just a list, but a platform that sets out to showcase talent, creativity and the best professionals – while also celebrating them. In 2025 1,154 recommendations were received and the jury evaluated 87 candidates from the submitted applications in eight thematic lists.

“Trade magazin supported the FMCG and Trade lists with recommendations, judging and we also voted on the entire Signature 40 list. We would like to congratulate everyone featured on the thematic lists and all the Signatures for their results!”

– says Zsuzsanna Hermann, CEO and editor-in-chief of Trade magazin.

If you feel that you have a colleague you would like to recommend or if you yourself are a talent who deserves a place on the thematic lists or among the TOP 40 nominees, keep an eye out for next year’s Signature 40 call for entries at signature40.hu!