Bullfrog’s executive creative director Elle Bullen and executive strategy director Mike Doman have departed the business to start their own indie creative agency.
The new agency is called Hellions defined as a rowdy or a mischievous child.
Bullen told Little Black Book that the new agency was not born following the identification of a gap in the market. Instead, her and Doman wanted to get back on the tools.
“A big motivator is for us to step back from managing teams so much and do the things that really actually make us happy,” she said.
“So it’s really stemmed from that, rather than being a reflection of the state of the industry.”
Dalton Henshaw, Bullfrog CEO, thanked the pair for their service.
“Their impact has been felt across the board, both at Bullfrog and in the ad community,” he said.
“While it’s bittersweet to say goodbye to these wonderful people, they leave as dear friends, and I couldn’t be prouder to see them have the courage to step out on their own and have a crack together. It feels special that Bullfrog is a chapter in the part of their incredible careers prior to wonderful moment. I can’t wait to see them soar.”
Hellions is expected to not follow a traditional model, instead it will be more flexible. The pair said that they are open to working in-house for chunks of time, taking on traditional advertising work or collaborating with “a network of indies to deliver bigger solutions.”
