Cummins&Partners has added Avish Gordhan and Mandie van der Merwe as a senior creative team to bolster its growing Sydney office.

The South African duo leaves Whybin/TBWA Sydney, where they were instrumental in campaigns for Tourism New Zealand, David Jones and RaboDirect during the last three years.

Julian Schreiber, founding partner and ECD said: “Avish and Mandie have worked on three continents and collected a multitude of awards from every major show. They’re problem-solvers and it’s clear they enjoy their craft. It’s this type of experienced creativity and talent that we were attracted to and know our clients will appreciate.”

“We’re the newcomers in the market,” said Tom Martin, founding partner and ECD. “But we’re growing fast. We’re here to challenge. And Mandie and Avish are proof of our intentions to deliver game-changing creative work.”

“It’s an exciting time to be joining Cummins&Partners Sydney,” said van der Merwe. “This agency is still carving out its space in the industry. And to be part of the team that defines that, is both a privilege and an honour.”

The team is the first senior hire by the ECDs who started earlier this year. Gordhan said, “Mandie and I have always had the philosophy of doing work that others wish they had done. But when we looked at Tom and Julian’s work over the years, it was hard to find a piece that we didn’t wish was ours.

“The prospect of growing with the business with these two at the creative helm, made this move an easy decision.”