Perth expat Brett Colliver departs DDB for joint chief creative officer role at Dentsu Aotearoa

Dentsu Aotearoa has appointed globally recognised creative leaders Brett Colliver and Mike Felix as joint chief creative officers. Colliver began his career in Perth teamed with Joe Hawkins at Gatecrasher before moving to New Zealand in 2007.

The newly established roles will be responsible for building the dentsu Creative proposition in market and infusing creativity throughout the entire dentsu Aotearoa business.

Bringing almost two decades of global experience, Colliver (left) and Felix (right) join dentsu from DDB Aotearoa where they have spent the last seven years.

Over their careers they have worked at globally recognised agencies on some of the biggest brands in both the region and the world, with Felix at Droga5 New York and Leo Burnett Sydney, and Colliver at Clemenger BBDO and Colenso BBDO.

They’ve claimed the top prizes at global creative award shows, including a Titanium Lion, Cannes Grand Prix and Yellow Pencils at D&AD. In 2022 along with Gold at Cannes they became the country’s second ever team to win a D&AD Black Pencil.

In their seven-year partnership they’ve been responsible for notable campaigns, including Samsung iTest, Steinlager’s Fight for Territory and the last four Lotto ‘Imagine’ campaigns, helping their clients to get recognised with 11 Gold Effies including the Grand Effie and two Sustained Success effectiveness awards.

Says Kirsty Muddle, CEO, Dentsu Creative Australia & New Zealand: “Our creative community continues to go from strength-to-strength, and we are beyond excited to be welcoming Brett and Mike to dentsu Creative. Our aspiration isn’t just to transform communication through creativity but transform business. Brett and Mike can clearly do that, evidenced by their work and awards in recent history. They are one of very few people in the region who have won a black pencil, one of the highest accolades on the global stage.”

Says Felix: “Helping to define dentsu’s creative voice in the local market and New Zealand’s creative voice on the global market (plus getting to keep working with Brett) is an honour I couldn’t turn down.”

Says Colliver: “When the new dentsu Creative brand was announced just under 12 months ago, it got my attention. And after meeting people from both the local team and the global team, it’s clear that there are big ambitions and even bigger things already in store at every level. It’s a very exciting time to be joining.”

Felix and Colliver will report directly to dentsu Aotearoa’s chief executive officer, Rob Harvey, and work alongside chief client officer, Rachel Anderson-Cormack, chief strategy officer, Stevie Weber, and the dentsu Creative ANZ leadership team including Kirsty Muddle, Avish Gordhan, and Mandie van der Merwe. They start in their roles on Monday 22 May 2023.