Tag: Howatson+Company

Sydney, Australia – JCDecaux has launched its new brand positioning, ‘Be Seen. Be Remembered.,’ reinforcing its focus on making out-of-home advertising work harder for brands by driving real business outcomes.

Developed in partnership with Howatson+Co, ‘Be Seen. Be Remembered.’ captures what makes out-of-home effective–visibility that leads to action.

For JCDecaux, marketers need reach and effectiveness. With growing audiences and increasing demand for accountability, every ad needs to capture attention and, more importantly, be remembered in a way that influences audience behaviour. ‘Be Seen. Be Remembered.’ is about ensuring campaigns aren’t just noticed, but drive measurable outcomes.

Essie Wake, chief marketing officer at JCDecaux Australia & New Zealand, said, “Out-of-Home has always been recognised for its scale and visibility. The question is not whether Out-of-Home works – it does. But we know true effectiveness requires more than just being seen. Through our research and experience, we’ve identified four key drivers that transform campaign performance: portfolio quality, creative impact, sophisticated planning, and meaningful measurement. Be Seen. Be Remembered. is our commitment to helping brands maximise all these elements to create lasting impact.”

JCDecaux’s new research with System1 highlights the importance of out-of-home creative effectiveness. Findings show that 50% of out-of-home exposure results in no brand recognition, and among those that do, half do not create enough emotional engagement to influence behaviour. 

Max Eburne, co-CEO at JCDecaux Australia & New Zealand, said, “True effectiveness comes from creative impact, planning precision, and accountability. Our new research with System1 shows that when campaigns achieve clear branding and strong emotional connections, their commercial impact doubles. As out-of-home continues its strong growth, outperforming digital in a challenging market, ensuring effectiveness is more important than ever for our clients.”

Meanwhile, Dave Watkins co-CEO at JCDecaux Australia & New Zealand, commented, “Our focus is on helping brands unlock the full potential of out-of-home. By optimising every campaign through testing, learning, and collaboration, we’re ensuring campaigns don’t just exist in the public space but actively engage audiences and drive results.”

Lastly, Chris Howatson, founder at Howatson+Co, stated, “The time has come to think of out-of-home as the foundation channel for some campaigns. Be Seen. Be Remembered. captures this evolution with striking simplicity. It’s both a statement of intent and a clear framework for effectiveness. JCDecaux has always shaped public spaces with impactful advertising; now they’re shaping how we think about out-of-home’s role in the media mix.”

Australia – Not much has been known about the offshore detention centres hosted by the Australian government and the numerous atrocities it has committed–as the freedom to document these realities has long been taken away from reporters and journalists. With that being said, how can those who suffered prove in court said injustices?

Enter social justice law firm Maurice Blackburn, who has worked alongside Australian creative agency Howatson+Company, to utilise artificial intelligence (AI) to create the first visual evidence of Australian-initiated atrocities in Papua New Guinea and Nauru–as told by those who survived in these detention centres.

To make this possible, the law firm has recorded more than 300 hours of interviews conducted with survivors of offshore detention, putting on record the injustices they faced. Together with AI technicians, the survivors then generated the first ever visual evidence of their experiences. From the colour of the tents to the subjects’ expressions, every detail was made as accurately as possible.

The law firm has also worked with Mridula Amin, three-time Walkley photojournalism award winner, who has remarked that this project is one of the first applications of AI that she has seen with an ethical purpose at its heart.

“When watching the images being created, it was incredible to see the level of detail and care taken, and the multiple prompts required to produce an as accurate depiction of the witness statements as possible, including working with the witnesses themselves,” Amin said.

Aside from creating a special campaign site, the images and statements have also been compiled into a book, and displayed at a powerful exhibition held in the Immigration Museum in Melbourne, created by installation artist James Dive of Scoundrel.

The evidence has been further shared with the public through OOH and social media, whilst the images have been uploaded to editorial site Shutterstock to sit alongside photojournalism.

For Jennifer Kanis, principal lawyer at Maurice Blackburn, these witness statements and images shine a light on a dark chapter of Australian history, adding that they bear witness to the unimaginable inhumanity experienced by the women, men and children incarcerated over many years.

“Along with our clients, it’s our hope that this collection of witness statements and the associated AI images serve as a permanent record and an urgent case for change to Australians and our government,” Kanis said.

Meanwhile, Gavin Chimes, executive creative director at Howatson+Company, commented, “It was a humbling and harrowing experience to work one-on-one with survivors of offshore detention. Nearly a year in the making, we took the utmost care to ensure their experiences were accurately depicted, with some images taking weeks to complete.” 

He added, “On behalf of Howatson+Company, we thank Maurice Blackburn and more importantly their clients, whose stories can now be told for the first time, and in a new way. We hope Exhibit A-i contributes to genuine hope for change on what has been a dark and horrific time in Australian history.”

Auckland, New Zealand – Advertising agency Howatson+Company’s Chief Creative Officer Levi Slavin has announced through a LinkedIn post that he will be departing the agency and will be joining family start-up The Ironclad Pan Company.

Slavin will be joining Ironclad as its chief creative officer based in Auckland, New Zealand. He will be bringing with him more than 20 years of experience in the creative industry.

“While the job was incredible, and our success inarguable, living away from family became too hard. So, starting this year, I’m going to be joining our family start-up Ironclad Co. full time,” the post read.

In an interview with MARKETECH APAC, Slavin shared that his new role will encompass building digital platforms, making documentaries, creating movements, and building powerful communities, amongst others.

“At Ironclad Co. we make products that are designed to be handed-down — rather than the ending up in landfill. We started with a 100% recycled iron skillet that had a three generation guarantee engraved in the base. The response was remarkable. I think people are genuinely exhausted with brands that use the environmental or ethics as sales tool rather than a brand fundamental. I’d like to continue to see how far we can take that,” he added.

On moving on from Howatson+Company to Ironclad, Slavin commented that he was equally “terrified and excited.” He added, “I am finally able to take an idea from inception to market with no interference. That’s a big responsibility. There no excuses—like budget, or time, or odd feedback, or nervous stakeholders. It’s just us.”

Moreover, he shared Ironclad’s plans moving forward, including designing a restaurant, creating a remote cooking school for kids, and building a platform that stores secret family recipes for the coming generations.

Prior to the move, Slavin was also CCO of ad agency Colenso BBDO and global creative director at Anomaly.

Slavin joined Howatson+Company in January of last year and was based in Australia.

Australia – Health insurer GMHBA has appointed Howatson+Company as their agency of record across the GMHBA and Frank brands. The agency will handle GMHBA’s brand strategy and creative, retail, customer experience and brand identity work for audiences across Australia.

The appointment follows after Howatson+Company has been recently tapped by UNSW as its agency of record, and by MYOB as creative lead.

Helen Stevens, chief marketing officer at GMHBA, said there was clearly a strong cultural alignment throughout the process and GMHBA were left with a sense that there is a mutual desire to operate as a true partnership.

“We were deeply impressed with Howatson+Company’s response to the pitch. Howatson+Company demonstrated a depth of strategic thinking, and creative capability that we are confident will help position GMHBA and Frank health insurance brands for future success,” she said.

Meanwhile, Rebecca Robertson, managing partner at Howatson+Company, commented, “The team at GMHBA live and breathe their brand, with the voice and needs of the member genuinely at the heart of everything they do. We are delighted to help the team drive the next stage of growth for both the GMHBA and Frank brands. On a personal note, I’m thrilled to be helping shape GMHBA, a brand I’ve grown up with.”

The new agency win comes just days after Howatson+Company had appointed Doug Hamilton and Michael Kleinman as creative directors.

Sydney, Australia – Advertising agency Howatson+Company has appointed Doug Hamilton and Michael Kleinman as its new creative directors.

Prior to joining Howatson+Company, Hamilton was a creative director at BMF and TBWA. Moreover, he also spent five years in New York at Droga5, and Anomaly. While Kleinman joins Howatson+Company from 72andSunny, where he was head of design. Prior to that, he also spent five years in New York at Droga5.

Commenting on their appointment, Hamilton said, “We’re delighted to be let inside the doors of Howatson+Company. One day in and we can tell it’s stuffed to the gills with lovely, clever humans. Michael and I never got to work together at Droga5, so we’re excited to have the chance now. We’re looking forward to rolling up the sleeves of our matching outfits and getting stuck in.”

Meanwhile, Levi Slavin, CCO at Howatson+Company, said, “I had the good fortune of working with Doug at Anomaly and have been a fan of Michael’s for ages. Both are splendid humans and extraordinarily talented. I’m absolutely thrilled they joined us in Sydney.”

In April 2022, Howatson+Company also added a duo to their creative team; Sophie Beard and Joash Tham are appointed as new creative directors.

Melbourne, Australia – Advertising agency Howatson+Company has been appointed by Australian-based business management platform MYOB to be its creative lead on its new brand advertising across Australia and New Zealand.

While MYOB works with several external agencies, as well as their in-house agency, Howatson+Company will be taking the lead on their brand advertising. The remit spans strategy and creative for internal and external audiences across the region.

Belinda Watson, MYOB’s head of design, agency and brand, shared there was a true sense of partnership and shared ambition for the business, that stood out during the tender process.

“Howatson+Company understood our strategy and the direction of the business. It was clear they took the time to really listen to our challenges and have applied critical strategic thinking and creativity to position MYOB for success,” said Watson.

Meanwhile, Rebecca Robertson, managing partner at Howatson+Company, noted that MYOB is a household name with a proven history of helping Australian and New Zealand businesses succeed. 

“We are thrilled to partner with MYOB to help support them in their next stage of growth. The MYOB team acted with such openness and integrity during the pitch process, we can’t wait to bring our shared vision to life,” said Robertson.

In May 2022, Howatson+Company has also been appointed by Sydney-based university UNSW as media agency of record. The agency was appointed following a competitive tender process to service UNSW’s domestic and international recruitment.

Sydney, Australia – Local carbon neutral telco Belong has launched a new campaign called ‘Second Life Phones’, an eco-friendly alternative to purchasing a brand-new device, powered by Kingfisher. 

The campaign, conceptualised by Howatson+Company, sources the best pre-owned smartphones, refurbishes them and offers them to value and environmentally conscious consumers at a considerable price.

All phones are restored by Kingfisher, across a multi-point check, ensuring full functionality and battery performance at about 80% minimum of new. The packaging is fully recycled and has been designed to provide the buyer with the same satisfaction of opening a brand-new device.

As part of the campaign, a film was launched which subverts the tropes of typical phone launches, gloriously showcasing an old man’s forehead instead of the tech, to ask the question ‘why not consider life on a refurbished phone, which can be used in the same way as a new one?’. 

Aaliah Eggins-Bryson, head of product and marketing at Belong, said, “Too many Australians believe mobile phones have no material impact on the environment than other things in their lives but in fact, every year, the world throws away around 44.7 million tonnes of tech. This is why we’ve launched Second Life Phones; because the most sustainable phone is the one that already exists.”

Meanwhile, Gavin Chimes, executive creative director at Howatson+Company, commented, “It has been amazing to work as partners with the brilliant Belong team to bring this program to life. We’re proud to be providing an alternative to unconscious tech upgrades. And when you consider what most of us use our phones for – brunch pics, baby spam, screaming goat videos – you probably won’t know the difference. But the planet will.”

Sydney, Australia – Sydney-based university UNSW has appointed Howatson+Company as media agency of record. The agency was appointed following a competitive tender process to service UNSW’s domestic and international recruitment. The appointment is effective immediately.

Sofia Lloyd-Jones, chief marketing officer, said Howatson+Company demonstrated their deep understanding of the sector, an intelligent, data led operating model treating media as a component of an integrated growth strategy, and a perfect cultural fit to the university. 

“We’re excited to appoint them as our media agency,” Lloyd-Jones said.

Chris Howatson, founder & CEO of Howatson+Company, shared, “UNSW is a top 4 Australian, and top 50 global university, and it’s right here on our doorstep. The opportunity to be part of such an accomplished team was a huge motivator from the moment we received the brief. Sofia has a brilliant vision for future student recruitment, and views the turbulence of the last two years as an opportunity to advance the university’s strengths.”

Meanwhile, Howatson+Company’s Head of Media Sasha Smith, commented, “We’re absolutely thrilled to be working with UNSW, an exceptional, value aligned partner for our team. We deeply admire their mission and vision, and are confident that together we can accelerate their future ambitions.”

Melbourne, Australia — The advertising agency Howatson+Company is experiencing significant growth this year and has added a duo to their creative team; Sophie Beard and Joash Tham are appointed as new creative directors.

Prior to joining Howatson+Company, Beard was an associate creative director at the CHEP Network where she re-launched Flybuys with a Spikes Grand Prix winning music video, created 7-Eleven’s first beauty product and collaborated with artist James Dive on a film for AGL.

Beard’s work has been recognised internationally at Cannes, D&AD, The One Club and New York Festivals. But she is most proud of being an ‘Aunty’ and supporting the next generation of women in the industry.

Meanwhile, Tham returns home to Melbourne from ColensoBBDO, where he recently advocated for small businesses with an Axis grand-Prix award-winning film ‘The Dancer’ for BNZ. Prior to that he effectively outsmarted covid with a Spikes Grand Prix award-winning film ‘Make Lamb, Not Walls’ for MLA, helping The Monkeys receive Agency of The Year at CampaignBrief and B&T 2021. He also co-created the ‘MS Bike’ at Grey Australia which went on to win multiple Cannes Lions.

It is truly a homecoming for Tham. In just over 10 years, his career has taken him from Melbourne to San Francisco, New York City, Sydney and back, working with some of the industry’s best creative talent at some of the most notable agencies in the world.

Levi Slavin, CCO at Howatson+Company, said that Beard and Tham are incredible creatives and will make inspirational creative leaders and they’re nice people.

“Beard is super clever but always makes sure I don’t look stupid in front of clients. And Tham is about as neurotic and awkward as me. Seriously. The first time we shook hands, Tham spent 10 minutes talking about how my hand felt in his. In the end, I just had to walk off. But I digress. I’m beyond thrilled to have such an exciting creative team helping to lead our Melbourne office,” Slavin said.

Jointly, Beard and Tham, said, “We’re delighted to be joining Howatson+Company. It’s an opportunity to do the best work of our lives, with some truly talented people. We’re stoked to be part of growing the Melbourne office and are already getting stuck in on some great client briefs.”

Sydney, Australia – Pet supplies brand Petbarn has launched a new campaign to introduce its new AW22 fashion range for dogs and cats. 

The campaign, which was created in collaboration with advertising agency Howatson+Company and fashion photographer Juliet Taylor, promises to make every pet moment glamorous, even the unglamorous ones, whilst showcasing a range of knits, raingear, and trench coats, amongst others.

Shannon Jenkin, Petbarn’s general manager of marketing, noted, “At Petbarn, we’re all about putting pets first. This is why our range of apparel is as well-made and stylish as any fashion brand. Makes sense that we treat it like one.”

Meanwhile, Chris Howatson, Howatson+Company’s CEO, said, “Pet wear is increasingly used as a form of human self-expression, but this campaign explores the idea that our pets have their own personalities and can be styled to match. We’re delighted to be sharing our first work for Petbarn.”

The campaign is live across digital, social, and OOH.