DARKHORSE opens Australian office and wins new clients
DARKHORSE has opened an Australian office and celebrated new client wins.
The announcement:
Integrated creative agency, DARKHORSE has worked hard to gain strong client growth in 2021. With exciting client wins in New Zealand and a highly anticipated launch into the Australian market, the agency has created positive momentum as 2022 approaches.
In the past six months DARKHORSE has added some iconic brands to its client portfolio including Synlait Swappa Bottle, bp New Zealand, Stoneleigh, Brancott Estate and iconic luxury label, Burberry.
“It’s exciting to add some incredible brands into our portfolio. We are finding more and more that clients are looking for an integrated agency that has the ability to offer a diverse range of services under one roof. This has set us apart and is proving to be a great model moving forward for DARKHORSE,” says Managing Director, Mike Hewitt.
Most recently DARKHORSE supported Synlait with the launch of its first consumer product, Synlait Swappa Bottle, a 1.5 litre stainless steel refillable milk bottle challenging the way Kiwis use plastic.
“Synlait has bold plans for 2022 and we were looking for a partner who could assist in our growth. We believe DARKHORSE are the perfect people to do just that and we are excited about beginning this journey with them, they’ve been instrumental in bringing the Swappa Bottle brand to life across multiple channels,” says Hamish Reid, Director, Sustainability and Brand at Synlait New Zealand.
This year, DARKHORSE also opened its Australian office, a move that has been highly anticipated by the team and clients alike. Senior Account Director, Frankie Gair will be relocating from Auckland to Sydney in the new year to spearhead the Australian activity. The business has already won a range of Australian clients including brands within the Pernod Ricard portfolio which include the Brancott Estate and Stoneleigh Wines global social retainers, alongside being awarded lead-creative agency for Malfy Gin across ANZ.
“Breaking into Australia has been a project we’ve worked on for the last few years and when the opportunity arose to expand our footprint into Australia, we knew sending an experienced team member would help us deliver the DARKHORSE approach in that market,” says Hewitt.
DARKHORSE has also strengthened its offering across strategy and communications with some talented newcomers. DARKHORSE welcomed Social Account Director, Libby Angus who moved agency-side after working at Farmers and who has been instrumental in recent social client wins.
The strategy and communications arm of the agency has also been fortified with internal promotions of Nicole Haysom to Senior Account Director in the PR team and Rachael Crosby to Strategy Director.
“Our key focus has always been our people, and how we can continue to serve up thought-provoking and strategic activity for all our clients,” says Executive Creative Director and Co-Founder, Liam Taylor.
With a combined communications and events experience spanning over 30 years, the DARKHORSE team continue to deliver groundbreaking, strategic campaigns for clients across multiple channels including communications, social, digital, strategy, creative, events and activations.
Over New Zealand’s Covid lockdown, DARKHORSE has taken the opportunity to re-launch its website to help showcase its full capabilities.
Source: DARKHORSE media release
