Olivia Kaufman has left the WPP-owned creative agency after three years. It’s the second high-profile departure in the past year, after Brian Vella departed as AKQA‘s Asia-Pacific CEO in July 2025.
The last 15 years of her career have been spent in advertising, across New York, London and Sydney, working across lifestyle, fashion and retail. Most recently, she spent four years at whiteGREY and AKQA, leading work for Westfield.
“For a while now, I’ve had a quiet, persistent feeling that I needed to build something of my own. So late last year, I stepped away. I’m excited, more than a little bit daunted, but very aware that you can’t grow a new skin without shedding the old one (especially with two young kids in the mix),” Kaufman shared to LinkedIn.
“Chapter two of my career is going to be building a lifestyle brand, but well aware this won’t happen overnight. Over the coming months, I am keen to connect with people across brand, marketing, creative, retail, and lifestyle who are building, experimenting, or collaborating in this space”.
A specialist in fashion and retail branding, Kaufman previously worked at lifestyle agency ODD and The General Store.
Vella departed the agency after 25 years with the business. He joined Melbourne-based digital agency DT as a senior producer in 2001, rising to become the agency’s CEO in 2011 before merging with AKQA in 2017.
Kaufman joined WhiteGrey as managing partner in July 2022 and was part of the leadership team that oversaw its merger with AKQA two years later.
She managed the agency’s largest client portfolio, including Australian retail giant Westfield. Most recently, she was part of the team that launched Westfield’s 2025 holiday platform, ‘Creatures of Christmas,’ to showcase the different personalities that appear during the festive season.
On her LinkedIn, Kaufman confirmed that she left her role at AKQA late last year.
