Emily Joe and Simone Louis have been promoted to creative directors. The pair joined Colenso three-and-a-half years ago from The Monkeys Aotearoa. For Emily Joe, it was return to Colenso; she spent four years there at the beginning of her career. The creative duo also worked together at TBWA\Auckland before joining The Monkeys.

Known for finding fresh, unexpected ways to tap into human behaviour, their ideas often take unconventional forms – from creating a lie detector for dogs to tackle a dog obesity, to building a football team made entirely of injured athletes to champion women’s health.

With Cannes Lions, Clio, one Clio Health, LIA’s and numerous local accolades among their wins, the pair is also behind Whiskas Meowzer campaign & recent brand work including Spark’s It’s Better with Spark platform and AMI’s brand refresh.

The creative pair commented, “We’re excited to take on this new challenge together as creative directors at Colenso. We’ve always loved solving different kinds of problems, and the chance to help shape the direction of these distinctive brands is something we’re really looking forward to.”

Simon Vicars, Colenso CCO, added, “It felt like a major coup bringing Emily and Simone back to College Hill. Their promotions are well deserved. They’re not only hungry and insightful creatives, but also natural leaders – their remarkable talent comes without ego.”

Angela Watson, Colenso CEO, stated, “Emily and Simone are amazing. This promotion is recognition of their incredible talent and relentless pursuit of creativity to solve our clients biggest problems.

Cover image l-r: Emily Joe & Simone Louis