Greatest moments
AdNews asked Gregorio, Rebelo and Cochrane to share some
of their greatest moments and favourite works to come out of
Saatchi & Saatchi.Proudest moment/greatest
achievement?
AG: I’ve only been here 16 months
so hopefully there are lot of great
moments to come. From a work
perspective we’re really proud of the
new Bank of Melbourne campaign.
Also our new business record has
been good and to welcome back
a brand like NRMA, for whom we
originally created the “HELP” brand
line, was a good feeling.MR: Firstly, getting the job as an
account manager at Team Saatchi
in 1997, as a young lad from Perth.
More recently, helping the team
put Saatchi & Saatchi back on to a
sustainable growth trajectory after
some instability. Winning St.George
Bank then Bank Of Melbourne and
BankSA. Opening a Melbourne office
and seeing that thrive. Acquiring
MercerBell back in 2016 to broaden
our capabilities in customer
experience. Winning back-to-back
Cannes Innovation Lions; OPSM’s
Penny the Pirate and Toyota’s
LandCruiser Emergency Network.
Wining EFFIE'S Agency of the Year in- Watching so many of our team
grow and do amazing things both
within Saatchi & Saatchi and also
outside of the brand. Finally, handing
over the reins to Anthony Gregorio in
2018, and genuinely knowing that he
had an awesome team of people and
a business that was on the cusp of
even greater things to come under
his leadership.
MC: My proudest Saatchi
Melbourne moment was about six
weeks ago – at the time of interview.
It comes from four years of team
work, adapting, and the creative
thinking from all 55 of the team here
at City Road. I think it symbolises
the arrival of the company in
the creative coliseum that is the
Melbourne market, and hopefully
the start of something special.Favourite work/s to come out of
Saatchi & Saatchi?
AG: Locally it’s Toyota “Nothing
Soft Gets In”. Making a brand
like Toyota part of the fabric of
Australia underlines what Saatchi
& Saatchi is better at than anyone.
Globally the work London did
for Castlemaine XXXX beer.
Irreverent, funny and with attitude.
What good beer advertising
should be.MR: Camry Chicken Campaign.
Hilux “Unbreakable Bromance”.
NRMA “HELP Job Interview”.
Tooheys New Beer Economy.
Toyota Border Security. St.George
Bank “Start Something”, Westpac
Rescue Rashie. OPSM “Penny
the Pirate Eye Test”. Toyota
LandCruiser Emergency Network
(LEN), Toyota Kluger “Boy in the
back seat”, David Jones “There’s
No Other Store”.MC: One of my favourite pieces
of work to come out of Saatchi
& Saatchi is not actually from
Australia, but from our European
colleagues. It was an in-house ad
posted on the Berlin Wall in 1990
simply reading: “Saatchi & Saatchi,
First Over The Wall”. The behaviour
of this ad says everything.eclectic and eccentric; diversity at
its best,” he says.
“We have always hired really
smart people who have wanted to
do great things ... with a huge
belief in the power of creativity
and a healthy dose of chutzpah.”
Rebelo has a substantial list of
achievements during his tenure,
which includes expanding the
agency’s operations in Melbourne.
When it came to finding the right
person to t a ke c ha rge i n Melbou r ne,
Rebelo called on Saatchi veteran
Mark Cochrane.
“Many said it would be tough
for a K iw i or a n out sider to t a ke on
a tight-knit market. I saw that as a
challenge, and an opportunity,”
Cochrane says. “It’s a challenge I
am excited by every day through
creating a culture that is optimis-
tic, humble and remembers, it’s
the work that will set us free.”
Cochrane has worked in
Saatchi’s global network in New
Zealand, the UK and Thailand
before moving to Australia. So, what
has kept him in the Saatchi circle?
“Three words. Nothing Is
Impossible,” Cochrane says.
“Every agency has its chal-
lenges and is never perfect, but it’s
the agency’s burning ambition to
create impossible outcomes for
businesses, brands and society
that has me whistling into work
every day, and I think most the
people who work here do too.”
Lots of laughter and
plenty of stories,
celebrating 40 years.http://www.adnews.com.au | September 2019 13