I’ve made tiles that regenerate marine life in Sydney Harbour, filmed a documentary about an NBA star, turned the world’s most downloaded app into a platform for female voices, founded a fintech startup, launched a brand platform in Swedish, directed a star-studded retail experience, recorded tampon ASMR, and even designed helicopter livery. All in between a few trips to Hawaii and a few attempts to save the elephants.

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Clients, present & past:
Philips, Bitvavo, ING, United Nations, Foot Locker, Amazon, Arthur J. Gallagher, SwissRe, Nike, Jordan, TikTok, Volvo, Hawaiian Airlines, Levi’s, SpaceX, Telstra, Kimberly-Clark, GSK, Syryse, Alibaba, Amazon, Orsted, NRMA, Sheldrick Wildlife Trust, NSW Government, Sydney Opera House, News Corp.

Homecoming

In collaboration with Jordan Brand, AKQA Amsterdam produced a series of short documentary episodes that chronicle NBA star Luka Dončić’s return to his hometown of Ljubljana. The episodes provide a raw, intimate portrait of a kid who grew up on the hardwood, set amongst the community he calls home.

  • Promote the launch of Luka Dončić's first signature shoe, the Luka 1.

  • Europe is a growing playing field for basketball, with many players from the continent getting drafted into top spots in the NBA. While much of the sport’s storytelling revolves around American protagonists, a distinctly European NBA star is now among the ranks: Luka Dončić.

    We decided to use the offseason and Luka's return to his hometown in Slovenia to show a different side of the rising star that European kids can relate to.

  • The Luka 1 sold out within the first three weeks of the launch of Homecoming's first episode.

  • “AKQA becomes one of Europe’s top agencies”

    The Lovie Awards

  • 2023 The Lovie Awards, Film & Video - General Video, Silver

Living Seawall

The Living Seawall adds complexity to flat concrete seawalls, providing better habitats for marine life. Made up of 50 tessellating tiles designed to mimic the root structure of native mangrove trees, the wall attracts filter-feeding organisms that absorb and filter out pollutants to help ‘clean’ the water while aiding biodiversity.

Beyond an innovative product, the Living Seawall is an ongoing 20-year ocean conservation project, designed in collaboration with Volvo, Reef Design Lab and the Sydney Institute of Marine Science.

  • Volvo Car Australia wanted to use World Environment Day as an opportunity to showcase its sustainability credentials, and its divergent and intelligent approach to problem solving.

  • Mangrove forests, and the filter-feeding species that inhabit them, keep our oceans clean. However, over time these harbourside ecosystems have disappeared to make way for manmade structures, like seawalls. The problem with seawalls? They’re too flat to support life. As a result, biodiversity and water quality suffers.

  • In the 24 month biodiversity assessment, the Sydney Institute of Marine Science observed 91 species on the Living Seawall including snails, mussels, crustaceans and more. For Volvo, Living Seawall contributed to a 136% uplift in brand consideration and a 146% uplift in Premium Brand Indexes.

  • “Volvo creates Living Seawall to combat pollution and promote biodiversity”
    Dezeen

    “volvo develops 3D-printed 'living seawall' to save the world's oceans from plastic pollution”
    designboom

    “Living Seawall is an interdisciplinary collaboration to open a broader conversation on the current crisis of pollution of the ocean with plastics.”
    The Design Museum

    • 2021 The Earthshot Prize, Finalist

    • 2020 Fast Company, Innovation by Design Awards, Sustainability

    • 2019 Beazley Designs of the Year

    • 2019 Cannes Lions, Design-driven Effectiveness - Brand Building, Silver

    • 2019 Cannes Lions, CSR - Brand Experience & Activation: Sectors, Bronze

    • 2019 London International Awards, Innovative Use of Design, Silver

    • 2019 London International Awards, Sustainable Design, Bronze

    • 2019 Spikes Asia, Design, Gold

    • 2019 APAC Tambuli Awards, Grand Prix

    • 2019 APAC Tambuli Awards, Gold 2019 APAC Tambuli Awards, Silver

    • 2019 AWARD Awards, Creativity For Good - Design, Silver

    • 2019 AWARD Awards, Poster & Outdoor - Alternative Media, Individual - Bronze

Pink Chip

Pink Chip is a company on a mission to unlock women’s economic power. Its first product is a collection of indices, developed in collaboration with Thematic and UN Women NL, that track the share price performance of women-led, publicly listed companies against market benchmarks - proving that despite the bias against them, women leaders are better for business.

pinkchip.org

  • There wasn't one. This was a proactive idea. No brief, no budget, no initial client.

  • Research shows that women-led businesses report above-average profits and have better stock price performance. Yet when some companies appoint a female leader, their share price drops by 2-3%. Why? Bias.

    1. In the first 3 months after it launched, the Pink Chip index attracted the interest of 83,000 investors and more than 40,000 invested in Pink Chip companies.

    2. The average share price of Pink Chip companies increased by 6.7%, representing over $6 billion in added value.

  • “Pink Chip Is Changing The Business World With Data On Women Leadership”
    Forbes

    “9 companies that make money more manageable”
    Fast Company

    • 2024 Cannes Lions, Glass Lion for Change, Gold

    • 2024 Cannes Lions, Sustainable Development Goal Lion, Gold

    • 2024 Cannes Lions, Creative Strategy, Gold

    • 2024 Cannes Lions, Direct, Silver

    • 2024 Cannes Lions, Innovation, Silver

    • 2024 Cannes Lions, Titanium, Shortlist

    • 2024 Cannes Lions, Creative Data, Shortlist

    • 2024 Fast Company World Changing Ideas, Finalist

    • 2023 The Lovie Awards, Diversity, Equity & Inclusion, Gold

World of Flight

In collaboration with local artists, photographers, ballers and more, AKQA launched Jordan Brand’s very first flagship retail store in Milan. What began as a hype-raising social media teaser campaign culminated in a spectacular opening night event that celebrated the city’s basketball culture and unique link to the brand.

  • Tease, launch, and capture the opening of Jordan Brand's first ever flagship retail store in Milan.

  • Since Michael Jordan’s iconic shattered backboard moment in 1985, Jordan Brand has been connected to Italy’s basketball and streetwear communities.

    The opening of World of Flight is more than just a store opening; it’s a celebration of that connection, of community, and of the Jordan Family across Italy.

  • The launch campaign and opening event showcased the first World of Flight through a hyperlocal lens, created in collaboration with Jordan Family artists, athletes, photographers and more.

    The launch campaign, which featured content captured by local artists including Bogdan ‘Bogi’ Plakov, Francesca di Fazio and Andrea Capone, produced a reach of more than 1.8 billion.

  • "Ciao, Jumpman! The Jordan Brand Takes Flight to Milan"
    HighSnobiety

#wearehere

For International Women’s Day, AKQA collaborated with TikTok EMEA to launch #wearehere - a brand platform and campaign that uses the power of TikTok to spotlight, celebrate and amplify women’s diverse voices.

  • Develop a campaign for International Women's Day for TikTok, using creators and content from the platform.

  • Thanks to its accessibility and welcoming community, TikTok has become a platform where women express their true selves and serve up endless entertainment, education and creative content.

    From indigenous punk rockers and digital fashion designers to olympians, racing drivers, scientists and more, TikTok is where women from all cultural, geographic and linguistic backgrounds come together and share their stories.

  • The #WeAreHere hashtag has amassed over 600 million views on TikTok, and was used by artists including Dua Lipa, Shania Twain and Little Mix.

    The campaign was adapted to multiple languages and went live in 7 markets around the world.

  • “TikTok Celebrate the #WomenOfTikTok on International Women’s Day”
    LBB Online

Omtanke

Omtanke (a Swedish word meaning care, consideration, and ‘to think again’) is a brand communications platform that brings to life Volvo’s values and its ingenious approach to design, craft and sustainability - in and beyond cars.

By showing how omtanke forms the basis of Volvo’s approach to design and innovation, we positioned Volvo as a different kind of luxury brand. The platform was activated by the Living Seawall activation and brought to life across TV, OOH, social media and digital display.

  • Build consideration among ‘luxury intenders’ without focusing on vehicle performance or 'safety'.

  • Luxury items aren’t a display of wealth; these days, they’re a conscious expression of knowledge about what's well made and unique. We knew our audience wasn't looking for flashy, expensive things - they’re looking for things that are different, sustainable, and designed with surprising creativity.

  • In the campaign’s first year, Volvo achieved up to 146% uplift in Premium Brand Indexes and a 136% uplift in brand consideration. The total number of all new car buyers who considered purchasing a Volvo rose by nearly 50%.

    We reversed a sharp decline in sales and consideration without relying on price discounting or uplift in marketing expenditure.

    • 2020 WARC Awards, Grand Prix for Effective Innovation

    • 2019 MFA Awards, Grand Prix 2019 MFA Awards, Business Impact

    • 2019 Effies, Brand Value, Bronze 2019 Effies, Other Consumer Goods, Silver

Skyryse

Skyryse is one of the world’s most pioneering aviation startups, but its brand didn’t reflect the scale of the impact its technology will have on human flight. In collaboration with the Skyryse team, we created a new brand narrative and identity centred on people, not planes. The result was a new logo, new narrative, new visual look and feel, new tone of voice, new product naming conventions - new everything.

  • Rebrand and reposition Skyryse for four core audiences: private pilots, fleet operators, investors, and original equipment manufacturers.

  • Skyryse makes flying machine-agnostic. In other words, its technology makes flying less about the machine (or the qualities of the person flying it) and more about the experience, the enjoyment, the safety, and the freedom of flight itself.

  • Skyryse launched the new brand internally and has since rolled it out across its digital touch points, aircraft livery, office branding and more.

Ele tee

The Ele Tee is a unique t-shirt that uses storytelling and fashion to teach kids about conservation while raising much needed funding for the Sheldrick Wildlife Trust.

The one-armed shirt unlocks an animated story about Garzi the Orphan, an orphaned elephant. Narrated by Kate Upton and animated by Passion Pictures, the story immerses children (and adults!) in the issues facing elephant populations in Africa, such as poaching and human-wildlife conflict.

buy an ele tee

  • Raise funds for the Sheldrick Wildlife Trust, and increase awareness of the issues facing elephant populations in Africa.

  • Stories are powerful motivators. They are vehicles for lessons, and inspire empathy (and donations!)

  • The Ele tee is sold worldwide, and Garzi's story has been be turned into an educational curriculum as part of the Sheldrick Wildlife Trust’s global school programs.

    Profits from the sale of the Ele tee go towards the Trust’s work protecting habitats in East Africa and its pioneering Orphans’ Project to rescue, raise and rehabilitate elephants back into the wild.

  • “Sheldrick Wildlife Trust educates kids about elephant extinction”
    AdNews