A round of applause to Meridian, Lotto NZ and Ford.

We’ve given the mic to the industry’s future leaders. Jae Woo Park, a digital designer at Saatchi & Saatchi, shares his thoughts on ad land.

Meridian has launched a new brand platform that celebrates how Kiwis will go to great lengths to keep New Zealand clean and beautiful.

Our weekly wrap of good things, strange things, funny things and other things from inside the intertubes.

Air New Zealand continues to sit above the rest of the brands on the social scoreboard – dominating all social media platforms except YouTube.

The inherent generosity of New Zealanders serves as the inspiration behind Lotto New Zealand’s latest campaign with DDB, ‘Kiwis Helping Kiwis’.

Ford’s gone back in time in a new campaign by BBDO New Zealand to show how it’s become embedded in Kiwi culture.

When the Government Inquiry into Mental Health and Addiction report was released in December last year, it painted a grim picture. “New Zealand is experiencing a rising tide of mental distress and addiction,” it said. “The cost of poor mental wellbeing and addiction is high. It is a high cost to individuals, families and whānau, businesses and organisations, communities, government and the country as a whole.” While the spotlight has been shone on specific demographics, one sector that is also toiling under pressure is our creative industries. We all know the squeeze of creative work well: late nights, long hours, client demands, unrealistic deadlines, impostor syndrome, self-criticism. This, coupled with the sensitive disposition creative people tend to have, often creates an environment where mental health issues can flourish. However, these people also have a talent for communicating ideas at a time when New Zealand has a base-level awareness of the problem, but not a deeper understanding or the tools to fix it. In part two, Elly Strang talks to the new wave of creators who are coming up with inspiring solutions to confront our mental health problem head on.

A round of applause to McDonald’s NZ, Air New Zealand and Countdown NZ.

When the Government Inquiry into Mental Health and Addiction report was released in December last year, it painted a grim picture. “New Zealand is experiencing a rising tide of mental distress and addiction,” it said. “The cost of poor mental wellbeing and addiction is high. It is a high cost to individuals, families and whānau, businesses and organisations, communities, government and the country as a whole.” While the spotlight has been shone on specific demographics, one sector that is also toiling under pressure is our creative industries. We all know the squeeze of creative work well: late nights, long hours, client demands, unrealistic deadlines, impostor syndrome, self-criticism. This, coupled with the sensitive disposition creative people tend to have, often creates an environment where mental health issues can flourish. In part one of a series, Elly Strang looks at the scale of the mental health problem in New Zealand’s creative industries.

Every Saturday for the last 16 years, the Weekend Herald’s glossy lift-out lifestyle magazine, Canvas has indulged readers with its signature blend of leisurely weekend content while sister lift-out Weekend has given readers a rundown on the weekend’s happenings. Now, the pair are joining forces to make a one-stop-shop lift-out for weekend content. We chat with NZME Weekend magazines editor Sarah Daniell about shaking things up.

Our weekly wrap of good things, strange things, funny things and other things from inside the intertubes.

Pead PR’s ownership has had a changeup this week, with managing director Sarah Munnik and group account directors Anna Farrera and Louisa Kraitzick joining CEO and founder ​Deborah Pead as shareholders.

The local marcomms industry has come together to help Pet Refuge New Zealand — a charity aiming to build the country’s first shelter dedicated to housing pets affected by family violence — with a campaign that’s raised over $250,000 in its first week.

Kiwi insurer Tower has announced the appointment of Shine as its strategic and creative communications agency, as well as its partnership with MBM for media planning and services. Both appointments follow a competitive pitch process.

A round of applause for NZTA, Discover Rotorua and Sylvia Park.