Winners announced for the 2026 WesBank New Generation Awards

The New Generation Awards stand as South Africa’s premier independent recognition platform for social-first marketing, digital innovation, AI, and creative technology. For 14 years, New Gen has benchmarked industry excellence, processing over 6,500 entries across corporate, agency, and emerging talent spaces, and awarding more than 1,700 trophies to the campaigns defining our digital future.

Stephen Paxton, founder of the awards, remarked: “We raised the benchmarks significantly this year, and our industry delivered beyond expectation. The sheer volume, quality, and creative bravery of the work submitted surpassed our highest expectations, with many Silver and Bronze winners reaching the gold benchmark of 82% and above – it has been profoundly inspiring.”

A deeper look at this year’s entries revealed a surge in high-performing, revenue-generating campaigns, alongside rich content marketing built on genuine community resonance and cultural relevance. Across categories, clear defining themes emerged: Trust over noise. Meaning over volume. Advocacy over impressions. Human connection over optimisation. Authenticity over trend-chasing.

In a digital landscape flooded with content, the rarest commodity is something that feels authentically human. This year’s work proved that brands understand people better than ever – favouring lasting community connections over quick campaign cycles.

Paxton conveyed heartfelt appreciation to the 30 esteemed jury members for their dedication and invaluable insights throughout the judging process.
Special gratitude was directed to our headline naming sponsor, WesBank; our Bronze sponsor, Unilever South Africa; our brand sponsors, Mettlestate and Naritive Global; and our category partner, OnPoint PR & Lifestyle Management. Being an independent awards programme means our sponsors aren't just partners – they are the fuel behind this magic! Thank you for helping us create an unforgettable night. We can't wait to keep building this momentum and sharing many more inspiring gatherings with you all. Thank you!

The coveted Black Onyx Main Award winners included:

• Small Agency of the Year joint winners: Lucky Hustle, retaining their title for the second consecutive year, and EGG Studios. Powered by Blue Robot as first-time winners.

• Medium Agency of the Year honours went to Penquin Advertising

• Large Agency of the Year Award went to Ogilvy.

• Golf: Volkswagen Group Africa was named Digital Brand of the Year, with agency partner Ogilvy, and Volkswagen Group Africa took top honours as the Overall Social & Digital Corporate of the Year.

• Telkom was awarded Best Customer Experience (CX) Campaign of the Year for the Possibility in Play Campaign, by Mscsports.

• Online Strategy of the Year joint winners included: Dis-Chem with agency partners Black&White and M&C Saatchi Abel, alongside Volkswagen Group Africa for the Forever Golf: #NameThisGolf Campaign by Ogilvy.

Biggest corporate winners

Dominating the corporate categories this year, the evening's biggest winners included industry powerhouses AB InBev, Volkswagen Group Africa, Mondelēz South Africa, Suzuki South Africa and Unilever South Africa.

In order of ranking, the four highest-scoring campaigns of the night:

• Best Influencer Marketing Campaign Award: Lucky Hustle for Xiaomi South Africa, Xiaomi RN15 – Titan Tough Campaign – Scoring 93%

• Excellence in Content Marketing Award: Volkswagen Group Africa for Forever Golf: #NameThisGolf Campaign by Ogilvy – Scoring 92%

• Excellence in Content Marketing Award: Mondelēz South Africa for Chappies Heritage Campaign – "We've been there since” by LePub Johannesburg – Scoring 91%

• Best Influencer Marketing Campaign Award: Clockwork for Nivea, Nivea Micellar – The Bare Minimum Campaign – Scoring 90%

Headline Partner WesBank commented: WesBank has spent over 50 years moving with our customers, and backing these awards for a second year reflects that same belief: progress is built by understanding real needs and staying relevant as they shift. That's the thread running through this year's strongest entries too: work built on trust, not just reach. As platinum headline sponsor, we're proud to stand alongside the marketers, creators and digital thinkers redefining how South Africans connect with brands, ours included. To every nominee and winner, you're shaping the future of marketing and digital media in this country, and that's worth backing.

For more information about the awards, click here.

Here are your 2026 winners: