New year, new (and even some pre-Christmas) news in this bumper edition of Movings/Shakings, as Saatchi & Saatchi kicks off its Creative Collective with two hires, DDB adds a six pack to the creative coterie, tributes flow for Wellington’s Mike Boekholt, Adshel announces its new marketing director, Michelle Boag farewells Ogilvy, Courtney Lambert exchanges Fairfax for Xero, Kath Hurley swaps the MPA for the MA, NZ Lotteries chooses its new chief, Holly Dean takes a break from The Sweet Shop, and Cliff Joiner switches allegiance.
A collective of two
To kick off both the New Year and Saatchi & Saatchi’s Creative Collective, executive creative director Antonio Navas has hired DDB’s ex-head of art Mike Davison and Sam Stradwick.
“Antonio is making good progress with our evolving creative model and will be announcing more hires soon. Part of this plan involves a much greater degree of collaboration between the Auckland and Wellington teams,” says chief executive Nicky Bell.
Davison has worked in the industry for more than 20 years (starting at the age of six as he likes to explain). He spent seven years in New York, the last three of which were at TBWA Chiat Day, and six years at DDB New Zealand, before heading off for some freelancing (including work on this ecostore billboard).
Stradwick has worked in a variety of Auckland design and ad agencies over the last few years and brings his natural design talent to help solve typography, illustration, layout and branding challenges.
“I cannot think of two better travel partners to go exploring the Holy Land of art and beauty than Sam and Mike. I learn from them every day,” says Navas.
Six pack
There were some big changes in DDB’s creative department last year, with Andy Fackrell replacing Toby Talbot and Chris Schofield arriving on the scene as creative director. And just before Christmas it announced the appointment of six new team members within the creative department.
Gosselin (left) and HuntJay Hunt and Pete Gosselin, previously at Colenso BBDO, have come onboard full time after a four month spell as freelancers. The duo met at Falmouth College in the UK in 2004 and have worked at some of the world’s top brands and London’s top agencies, including Lowe, M&C Saatchi and Leo Burnett before moving to New Zealand last year.
They were ranked as the Big Won’s #7 and #8 creatives in the UK in 2011 and created the Gunn Report’s 2nd most awarded ad worldwide in 2009 for The House of Cards. Youtube Video
“Jay and Pete get funny and humour is a big part of what DDB does,” says Schofield. “Their Vodafone ‘Double Rainbow’ spot really stood out last year. They have freelanced at DDB for a few months and have quickly made themselves invaluable to the place. The only disappointment is their names. They’re the wrong way round. Pete sounds like an English name and Jay sounds Canadian. After some serious negotiations I’m pleased to say they’re happy to swap, which is good of them really.”
Kevin Bachtiar (left) and Sasha ArandelovicIn keeping with the ongoing hostage swapping of 2011, the junior team of Sasha Arandelovic and Kevin Bachtiar has also joined DDB from Colenso. The pair won AUT Creative Team of the Year 2010 and were winners of the Anno ‘State of Design’ Student Competition 2010. Their work for NZ International Comedy Fest gained huge kudos in the industry.
“Sasha and Kevin work hard and produce grown up ideas, pretty impressive considering they’re only 12,” says Schofield.
The final two additions to the family are Jake Barnes and Liz Richards, this year’s top performing Adschool team who won the inaugural DDB Scholarship, a fully salaried three month internship starting in January 2012.
Farewelling a wonderful man
Tributes are flowing for Wellington-based creative and art director Mike Boekholt, who died at the age of 46 in Hong Kong over Christmas. According to Campaign Brief, Boekholt was visiting his wife’s family in Hong Kong and passed away on December 27 after a bad case of flu turned into pneumonia.
Boekholt spent nine years at Bates Hong Kong and Bates Singapore, and worked in New Zealand at Leo Burnett Wellington and as a freelancer. He started Fluent.co.nz in 2001 and he also ran Memento productions, which specialised in capturing important corporate and family history.
Boekholt’s memorial service in New Zealand will be held at 1:30pm on Thursday, 26 January at St. Joseph’s Church, Mt. Victoria, Wellington.
Adshel’s latest addition
Adshel’s last marketing director Elvira Lodewick headed off for pastures anew in December after three years with the company and Nicole McInnes has been named as her replacement. She will report to Adshel chief executive Rob Atkinson and take overall responsibility for all marketing planning and management in Australia and New Zealand.
She joins Adshel from American Express and has an extensive agency and client background, having worked for Dell, AAPT, Ogilvy & Mather, Emery Vincent and EKH Branding House.
McInnes says it was not only the opportunity to bring added creativity to the Adshel marketing team but a desire to “also deliver the numbers for clients by continuing to grow Adshel’s reach and frequency scores, which are the highest-ranking in the industry”.
“Digital, mobile and social media will be key focus areas to help drive cut-through and relevant engagement for our clients.”
“Very rarely do you find a marketing leader who has worked on both the client and agency side including several years in a creative capacity that saw her win a prestigious Cannes Lion and various other distinctions from Caples New York, ADMA and the London Advertising Awards,” says Atkinson.
Adshel’s director of sales, Peter Charlton, also welcomed McInnes’ arrival and looked forward to working with her to strengthen relationships with media partners and clients alike.
“Her impressive experience will undoubtedly help us further demonstrate the power of the Adshel network at delivering engaging and innovative out of home media solutions.”
She will be based in Sydney at the St Leonards office.
No more Boagilvy
The result of the Vodafone pitch is expected to be announced soon, but Michelle Boag, who took up the role of executive director at Ogilvy early last year, won’t be there for the champagne if the agency happens to win.
She wasn’t able to be contacted but left the company in December, moved to Waiheke and, according to LinkedIn, is now the director of Michelle Boag Ltd. Her departure adds to those of client services director Nikki McKelvie and ECD Damon O’Leary, who is still thought to be working for the agency but as a consultant.
X-woman
After a brief stint as the marketing and communications manager at Fairfax, Courtney Lambert has taken another role as marketing and communications manager of Xero based in Silicon Welly.
It’s a global role and she will be taking care of the marcomms requirements for the push into the US market, with a focus on the online side of things (blog/video/community).
Association hopping
After four years as the marketing and communications manager at the Magazine Publisher’s Association, Kath Hurley has resigned and accepted a role on the education and events team at the Marketing Association. She will finish up her MPA role at the end of January.
Executive director John McClintock confirmed that the association will be making a decision regarding a replacement within the next few weeks. All communications should go to [email protected].
In the money
Wayne Pickup, who will be returning to New Zealand having worked in senior management roles with leading gaming technology and services company GTECH Corporation in Australia and Europe for over four years, has been appointed to succeed Todd McLeay as chief executive of NZ Lotteries.
Prior to joining GTECH, he worked for NZ Lotteries in various roles, latterly as chief information officer, “where he gained extensive hands-on experience in managing lottery operations, including the conversion of gaming systems and implementation of an internet gaming system”.
Chair of the board Judy Kirk says his broad management experience in the lotteries business, both in New Zealand and internationally, meant he was very well equipped to take on the chief executive position. She was confident that under his leadership NZ Lotteries would continue on its recent growth path leading to increased funding for community causes through the NZ Lottery Grants Board.
Pickup will take up the role on 19 March. In the meantime Warren Salisbury, the chief financial officer, will be the acting chief executive.
Parting is such sweet sorrow
After “a few crazy years” at The Sweet Shop, marketing executive Holly Dean has headed off for “a well deserved break, to hang out on the beach for a while, surf, read, paint, hippie around with my camera”, and do all the things she’s been a bit to busy for recently.
She plans to be back on the circuit freelancing around late February.
Joiner joins MediaWorks
After missing out on the TVNZ head of news and current affairs role, which went to the ex-director of news for Network 10 in Sydney, Ross Dagan, senior TVNZ news executive Cliff Joiner has shifted allegiance to the MediaWorks and taken a role as executive producer of The Marcus Lush Breakfast on RadioLIVE, where he will produce a team that includes Marcus, Hilary Barry and Martin Devlin.
“Cliff Joiner is a news heavyweight who brings a wealth of journalistic experience to our breakfast programme and RadioLIVE, which I’m very excited about,” RadioLIVE general manager, Jana Rangooni says.
Joiner leaves his current position as national bureau editor for TVNZ for the job, and will start at RadioLIVE in 2012.
