As a seasoned marketing leader and creative strategist, I bring over a decade of experience in brand building, digital innovation, and impactful campaign execution. My journey spans successful roles across diverse brands, driving measurable results. Explore my work, discover my journey, and connect to see how I can bring strategic creative value to your team.
Burger King® - Whopper® Envy
The ad dramatises an emotion everyone has experienced at some point - food envy. The premise is simple - it doesn’t matter what you eat; if it’s not a freshly prepared Whopper, you’ll experience Whopper envy.
Whopper® Envy
BURGER KING®
Situation
In 2016, consumer expectations evolved, demanding consistent, multi-channel brand interactions. As a new player in the QSR market, Burger King faced the challenge of establishing its brand voice with a relatively minor budget compared to its competitors. Creating strong brand recognition and engagement was paramount, mainly to position ourselves as the QSR leader in high-quality, fresh burgers.
Task
Our goal was to increase Burger King’s market presence. We focused on the Whopper as our signature product to drive customer awareness, engagement, and preference. We aimed to shift customer perception positively and increase our share of voice despite budget constraints.
Action
Working alongside our creative agency, we developed a Customer Journey Strategy emphasising a high-frequency, always-on media approach across TV, social media, and the web. We launched the campaign with a powerful TV commercial in October 2016 featuring the iconic Whopper. This was supported by a digital campaign tailored to offer a personalised customer experience. To guide our strategy, we conducted a study with KLA to assess brand perception, allowing us to fine-tune our messaging and prioritise engagement and visibility.
Result
The Whopper Campaign marked a notable turnaround, with substantial improvements in brand metrics and business results:
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Shifted from negative to positive SSS (same-store sales) and SST (same-store transactions) results.
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Achieved a 23% increase in sales for the Whopper, Double Whopper, and Triple Whopper
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Campaign period sales grew 8.1%, while gross profit rose 8.7%.
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TV campaign secured additional PR value worth R849,372, boosting brand visibility and talkability.
The campaign bolstered Burger King’s market presence and laid a foundation for continued growth through consistent, customer-focused messaging.
Burger King® - King of the Day
These days, the "Randelas" just don't add up, leaving way too much month at the end of the money. Value as we know it, doesn't make sense. Let’s be honest - what else can you get for R29.90 these days? Not much…except at Burger King.
King of the day
BURGER KING®
Situation
With the South African Rand's decline and a challenging economic environment, consumers needed help to afford necessities. This economic reality created a sense of financial pressure and disillusionment among South Africans. Burger King aimed to address this situation by using humour to offer some comedic relief, making light of the "Randemic" while promoting its value-for-money offerings.
Task
The objective was to connect with South African audiences during a difficult period, providing a sense of community and relief through relatable, humorous content. By highlighting how little R29.90 could buy in most scenarios, we aimed to position Burger King as a brand that still offered substantial value with its "King of the Day" specials. The goal was to drive traffic and increase sales by tapping into shared frustrations in a lighthearted way.
Action
Working with our creative team, we developed adverts depicting exaggerated scenarios where customers attempt to purchase necessities for R29.90. The humorous responses from servers in these situations underscored the declining value of the Rand while also showcasing Burger King as a place where R29.90 could still buy a full meal. The campaign used satire to turn the financial struggles of South Africans into a relatable, community-focused narrative, encouraging audiences to laugh and find humour in adversity.
Result
The "King of the Day" campaign was highly successful, achieving:
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A 13% year-on-year increase in comparable sales from September 2021 to March 2022.
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An 11% increase in traffic for the same period, showing strong engagement and brand resonance.
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The adverts addressed the economic challenges in a humorous, culturally relevant way, creating a positive emotional response. The campaign made audiences feel seen and part of a community, strengthening Burger King’s position as a brand that understands and empathises with the struggles of everyday South Africans. This approach also encouraged content sharing, further amplifying brand visibility and reach.
Burger King - Astro Whopper
Turns out there’s a giant burger floating around in outer space. And it’s flame grilled! Meet Gomez’ Hamburger – a 10.000° flaming hot, sun-like star discovered in 1985 by the astrophotographer Arturo Gomez. When it flew over South Africa, we seized the opportunity to create a truly out-of-this-world experience and remind everyone what Burger King is all about.
Astro Whopper®
BURGER KING®
Situation
Burger King South Africa aimed to create a unique and attention-grabbing campaign to engage audiences memorably and differentiate itself within the competitive fast-food market. The campaign aimed to boost brand engagement, drive app downloads, increase foot traffic, and reinforce Burger King’s “flame-grilled” brand identity.
Task
The challenge was to develop a campaign that combined digital and physical engagement, enticing customers to interact with Burger King on multiple channels. The strategy aimed to drive significant app downloads, increase in-store visits, and boost sales.
Action
Inspired by the celestial phenomenon “Gomez’s Hamburger,” the Astro Whopper campaign encouraged users to “find the Whopper in space” via an interactive, web-based sky-scanner. Key campaign elements included:
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Social Media: Countdown posts on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter built excitement and anticipation.
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Out-of-Home (OOH) Advertising: Eye-catching billboards with phrases like "Houston, we have a Whopper" directed people to find the Whopper in space.
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In-App Engagement: Push notifications invited app users to participate, while new downloads were incentivised with a free Whopper reward.
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Video Content: A mini-documentary featuring astrophotographer Arturo Gomez, who discovered “Gomez’s Hamburger,” added depth and authenticity to the storytelling.
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Website and Web App: A custom sky-scanner app lets users locate the Whopper in space, gamifying the experience and rewarding successful searches with a free burger.
Result
The "King of the Day" campaign was highly successful, achieving:
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The campaign was highly successful, achieving:
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A 62% redemption rate, with 15,000 Whoppers claimed.
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A 180% rise in app downloads, expanding Burger King’s digital audience.
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A 21% increase in incremental sales demonstrates the campaign’s effectiveness in boosting engagement and revenue.
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Coca-Cola - Mandela
Shortly after the passing of one of South Africa's icons, I pitched this proactive idea to Coca-Cola, one of our clients at Ogilvy, CT. The idea was to pay tribute to Nelson Mandela in a memorable way. What better way than the iconic shirt prints he was known and loved for.
Birdlife South Africa
This poster campaign was showcased at the Oceans of Life Photographic Exhibition at the Iziko Museum during the Save Our Seabirds Festival in October 2011. The campaign aimed to raise immediate awareness about the devastating impact of pollution, overfishing, and habitat destruction on seabird populations.
MARviK
The name MARviK holds layered significance: the "vi" references Carbon, the 6th element on the periodic table, symbolising stability and adaptability, essential traits for a financial service provider. Additionally, the capital letters form "MARK," a tribute to the company’s founder, Mark Gilbert.
MARviK
The Jupiter Drawing Room
Situation
At The Jupiter Drawing Room (Utopia), we created a logo and identity for a new financial investment company, MARviK. The goal was to build a brand identity that reflected MARviK’s core values and vision, inspired by the unique qualities of its name.
Task
The objective was to develop a corporate identity conveying MARviK’s stability, adaptability, and limitless potential — qualities essential for a financial services provider. Additionally, the identity needed to honour the company's founder, Mark Gilbert, while creating a professional yet memorable brand presence.
Action
The logo and branding concept was inspired by the connection between MARviK and Carbon, the sixth element on the periodic table (represented by ‘vi’ in Roman numerals). Carbon symbolised stability and adaptability, mirroring the company’s ethos. The capitalised letters in “MARviK” spell out “MARK,” a subtle tribute to the founder. We extended this theme to the design of the business cards, using a periodic table-inspired layout to reinforce the connection to Carbon and the brand’s underlying philosophy.
Result
The MARviK identity effectively conveyed the brand's values and vision, creating a visually compelling and meaningful representation of the company. The design resonated well with the client, establishing a strong and distinct brand presence in the financial sector. The business cards, in particular, were memorable and sparked positive conversations, reinforcing MARviK's unique position and helping to set a solid foundation for the brand's launch.