The run up to the Christmas is an odd time in adland. But amongst the lunches, dinners and drinks events, some agencies were hard at work winning new business. So here are the agencies that ran into Christmas with a bumper client list. That’s right, it’s your first new business winners of 2025. We’re so back.
There were a succession of creative wins announced in December. Indie creative shop By All Means announced four small client wins and Cummins&Partners won the Children’s Cancer Foundation. The media side of things was quieter, though Ryvalmedia picked up Steve Madden, in addition to our bronze, silver and gold medallists below.
We also ran down the agencies that were the biggest winners across 2024 last month—check that out if you haven’t already.
But without any further ado, these are the agencies that romped into the Christmas break.
Creative Agencies
Bronze – Havas Host
Havas Host drove off with an interesting win in December, being handed control of Chinese automaker Geely’s social and creative. Its remit will include developing a new brand campaign, building on the automotive powerhouse’s current global platform to inspire consumers to ‘See The World In Full’.
Dentsu has been handed responsibility for public relations, influencer and ambassador management, including press fleet management. Dentsu’s experience business, Merkle, has been tasked with the creation of Geely’s Australian digital consumer experience, starting from the website interactions, including pre-order and test drive bookings.
“Havas and Dentsu presented ideas that resonated with our brand values, ensuring our commitment to Australia was front and centre in their approaches. We are excited to gather a team of market talents to strengthen the presence of the Geely brand,” said Li Lei, head of Geely Auto Australia.
Gayle While, CEO of Havas Host, said, “We’re thrilled to have the opportunity to partner with the Geely Auto Australia and Dentsu teams to launch the brand into the Australian market with impact. The Geely team have bold ambitions, and we’re looking forward to bringing to life the possibilities that Geely Auto products can bring to Australians.
Silver – Bastion
Bastion had a December to remember, meanwhile. B&T revealed that it gobbled up the consolidated creative accounts for Kellanova’s Breakfast and Wholesome Snack creative, as well as launching a new media division to service the company end-to-end.
Ben O’Brien, commercial director at Kellanova Australia, said: “We are excited to deepen our partnership with Bastion as they become our lead creative agency for Kellogg’s brands in Australia and New Zealand. This decision is a testament to the strong work they have delivered, particularly as we celebrate Kellogg Australia’s 100-year milestone. We look forward to leveraging their creative expertise to continue building our brand legacy.”
“We want to be able to go to our clients with a stronger, more integrated offering with one door to go through. What that’s meant for us is that we needed to close the gap within media,” Bastion CEO Cheuk Chiang told B&T.
“The play in media is going to be quite profound across our entire business. Media isn’t just going to play a role connecting with creative. It’ll make our creative stronger but also make our experience offering stronger. It’ll make our social and influencer offering way stronger, obviously because we’ll have stronger connections with the platforms. It’ll make our insights offering stronger as it will plug directly into media—something unique and distinctive for us because we’ve got such a large insights capacity, more so than any other agency group.”
Gold – TBWA
TBWA notched two tasty wins in December. First, its Melbourne and Auckland offices were appointed as the integrated creative agency for Kraft Heinz following a competitive pitch process. TBWA will oversee all strategic and creative output across Kraft Heinz’s portfolio of brands, including Heinz, Gravox, and Wattie’s.
“We are very pleased to re-engage with TBWA, who previously held our account for three years in Sydney and delivered outstanding creativity across our core brands,” said Michael Magee, CMO of Kraft Heinz.
“Their Disruptive approach and deep understanding of our brands make them the perfect partner as we look to continue to elevate our presence in the market.”
Paul Reardon, chief creative officer, TBWA\Melbourne, added “Kraft Heinz has great brands with a high benchmark for creative work both here in Australia and New Zealand, as well as globally. It’s an exciting partnership. When pitching to Kraft Heinz, we spoke a lot about the importance of disruptive work in ‘shared’ and ‘owned’ media — areas we love to play in. We can’t wait to get started.”
Its second important win saw TBWA\Sydney appointed as the creative agency for Goodman Fielder bread brand Helga’s.
“From the get-go, TBWA demonstrated a deep understanding of our brand’s vision. Their disruptive approach to creating impactful work and the way they collaborated with us during the pitch process demonstrated that they would be the right long-term partner for us,” said Christine Fung, CMO, Goodman Fielder.
“What has been clear from the outset is the spiritof partnership that Goodman Fielder brought to the table – there was a genuine desire to disrupt, starting with the pitch process itself. We loved their ambition for the brand and can’t wait to get started,” said Nitsa Lotus, chief growth officer at TBWA.
Media Agencies
Bronze – We Are Social
We Are Social picked up eBay’s social and influencer marketing work in December, and is promising a focus on Instagram and TikTok to drive consumer engagement with the brand.
It will also work in partnership with local creators to drive community engagement and activate retail experiences across categories including pre-loved fashion, trading cards and car parts and accessories.
As part of the remit, We Are Social will be reviewing eBay’s organic social and influencer strategy to align with its brand platform Everyone Has a Thing and strengthen its social presence.
“Partnering with We Are Social marks an exciting new chapter for eBay Australia as we look to deepen our connection with our enthusiast buyers through innovative and engaging organic social content. With 25 years in Australia and millions of Aussies using eBay every month, our brand is truly ingrained in pop culture. We Are Social’s expertise in social and influencer marketing aligns perfectly with our vision to not only stay at the forefront of trends but to actively shape them,” Zannie Abbott, head of campaigns and comms, eBay Australia added.
Silver – Initiative
Initiative picked up a huge global account late last month. It drove off with the media work for Volvo around the world, excluding China. WPP-owned Mindshare had been the incumbent on the account locally and globally.
“We regularly evaluate our agency model and operations to ensure we are equipped with the right technologies, agility and efficiency,” said a Volvo spokesperson.
“We have appointed Initiative, powered by IPG, to lead our media strategy, planning and buying, in all regions with the exception of China.”
How this win will stand up with the proposed Omnicom and IPG merger remains to be seen. Last year, OMG-owned PHD won Porsche, for instance.
Gold – OMG
Omnicom Media Group closed out 2024 with a significant win, snaring Reckitt Benckiser’s media account away from Publicis’ Zenith—another story that B&T revealed.
Reckitt was Australia’s fourth largest advertiser in 2023, according to Nielsen’s ad spend data—putting its spend north of $80 million.
Florence Paoli, marketing director of Australia & New Zealand for Reckitt Hygiene, confirmed the move to B&T.
“Reckitt in Australia has enjoyed a strong and valued partnership with Zenith for over a decade, marked by significant achievements across our media strategy. We’re grateful for the team’s dedication and celebrate the work we have delivered together,” she said.
“As the home of some of the world’s most loved household and healthcare brands, we’re excited by the new opportunities new partnerships can bring, particularly as we focus on driving consumer delight and category growth within our portfolios.”
Reckitt Benckiser’s brands are spread across three divisions: hygiene, health and nutrition; and include Nurofen, Gaviscon, Dettol, Strepsils, Mortein, Air Wick, Harpic, Vanish and Durex.
