Strong creative thrust for NATIVE

"Having completed the task of merging three businesses into one NATIVE, I am happy to be focusing on the area of the business where I can add the most value - the work. I am a filmmaker and creative director by trade, so the greatest contribution I can make is in this area," he says.

He explains that the vision at NATIVE has always been to build a strategically and creatively-led agency. "But you have to walk before you can run. The past two years were about creating an agency capable of producing world-class work. Now the time has come to leverage what we have built in order to deliver on our creative aspirations."

In line with this strategy, NATIVE has employed Executive Creative Director Ryan McManus, infamous for his global campaigns that included making 100 people walk 340 miles to earn a ticket to the MTV Awards and projecting graffiti all over Munich's national monuments, and Creative Director Suhana Gordhan, the creative genius behind Nando's brand brilliance over the last five years.

"Ryan and I are working in partnership," says Jason. "He is extremely talented and we have a very similar opinion of what works and what doesn't. Ryan will be managing the creative work on a day-to-day basis, while I will assist him in building a department capable of delivering great work time and time again."

"Suhana, who comes from more of a traditional background, is a great conceptual thinker. She understands brands and she understands their relevance in people's lives. That is particularly important to us. As we have always said, our ideas are born digital but they often extend beyond the digital canvas. Great ideas are not bound by media platforms or technologies. They transcend channels. They live in people's lives. Suhana understands that and that makes her a valuable member of our team," says Jason.

So what does NATIVE hope to achieve with these new changes? Great work, says Jason. "We have developed strategic tools and methodologies to help us achieve this vision, and we have hired people who can transform that vision and strategy into a reality. We are looking forward to an exciting year ahead," he concludes.