Avish Gordham has plied his trade across three continents over nearly two decades, picking up more than 100 awards along the way, with recognition at D&AD, Cannes and the Australian AWARD Awards, among others.
He has worked on brands including Tourism Australia, Fox Sports, Nando’s, Tourism New Zealand, David Jones, MINI and Virgin Money, and his work on Go Gentle Australia was recently nominated as one of the Australian Campaigns of the Decade.
In this week’s Fast 10, B&T’s Greg ‘Sparrow’ Graham spoke with the Saatchi & Saatchi CCO to talk career highlights, why great work is always scary to make, and why his mum was thrilled he finally landed at an agency she’d actually heard of.
1. You’ve had an amazing career, from junior art director at TBWA in South Africa to executive creative director at M&C Saatchi to chief creative officer at Saatchi & Saatchi. If you had to pick only one, what would be your career highlight so far?
Avish Gordham: The day I realised that being creative could allow me to see different parts of the world, work in different markets and play a role in the life of huge global brands, was pretty liberating. Coming from Clare Estate in South Africa, I didn’t even consider that as an option for my life when I was just starting out.
2. As a young boy, what did you want to be when you grew up?
AG: I’m still not sure what I want to be when I grow up. But when I was younger I used to play basketball. I don’t know if I ever dreamed of being a basketball player but I put in the effort. I’m 5’4 though. So that dream was always going to be a slight challenge.
3. Saatchi & Saatchi has won 8 Australian Effies in 2025. Does award success translate into business momentum?
AG: We picked up 10 new pieces of business in 2025. And we won 8 awards at the 2025 Australian Effies. Causation? Correlation? I’ll leave that to the strategists. Either way, we’ve got the wind in our sails for now and a goal to keep putting creativity that works out into the world.
4. I love the work you’ve done for Arnott’s. What’s your favourite work that you’ve done in the past 12 months?
AG: It’s always hard to choose a favourite child. We’ve made some great films over the past year, but what excites me most are the ideas that don’t stop at advertising. The work that spills into partnerships, products, culture and earned media. Things like Bikkie Belt for Arnott’s are a good example – a brand partnership idea that became part of the entertainment itself. I’m interested in creating ideas people discover, participate in and talk about, rather than simply watch.
5. You’ve worked across two continents and multiple agency cultures. What’s the one thing that’s universally true about great creative work, no matter where you are?
AG: Great work is hard to make. It’s always scary. It lives on the edge of constant death. It takes clients with imagination. It takes a team with resilience. But, most of all, it takes everyone believing in the work in the same way.
6. You’ve grown the executive team with the additions of James Cowie and Piero Ruzzene. Is creating great work ultimately a team sport?
AG: It is. And it also isn’t. Great work comes from combining the greatest thinkers and allowing them to challenge each other while building something bigger. Then it’s about giving each individual the freedom to obsess over the craft without allowing group-think to dilute their talent. James and Pez are team players. But they’re also wildly talented, highly competitive individuals who know the difference between good and great.
7. Creative leadership can be a lonely job. Who do you turn to when you need honest feedback?
AG: Mandie. She has been my creative partner for over 20 years. It must be the South African-German-English-Dutch heritage in her – she says things straighter than anyone I know (while still being caring). I prefer all my feedback to be direct, especially if the person giving it doesn’t mind my honesty either.
8. What’s the best career advice you’ve ever been given?
AG: Make work that stops you, and it’ll stop others too.
9. What’s one thing not on your LinkedIn profile?
AG: I play chess badly.
10. Important last question: Do your parents really know what you do?
AG: There are some days in this industry when even I can’t tell you exactly what the job is! But seriously, my mum is the sweetest and has worked hard to understand my job. She definitely gets down with all the advertising lingo. She was quite happy when I got the Saatchi & Saatchi gig – it was the first agency I’d worked at that she’d actually heard of.
