Category archives: Adland

Don’t be surprised when you are greeted at the door of & Anonymous by a bearded man sporting a pink Barbie-topped balaclava. Or a leather-clad woman in a diamante-studded, gimp-like mask. Or anything in between, provided it hides the wearer’s face. The founders of & Anonymous are simply living the new company’s credo;

“A lot of agencies say it, but we wanted to live it: it’s time that the work came first. So we don’t need a name, and you don’t need to know our faces. It’s time to drop the ego, and focus on the ideas.”

Unfortunately, for the purposes of a media launch, names and faces are crucial. So the balaclavas are removed, revealing Joy Turnbull, ex Network BBDO Deputy MD; Brad Reilly ex Jupiter Drawing Room Chief Creative Officer; and Darren Cronje, ex Jupiter Creative Director.

Together, they have over 40 years of experience in the marketing, brand building and advertising arena, having worked their way up the ladder from junior account director and creatives to leaders and board members of two of South Africa’s top agencies. They have built brands from scratch, turned them around from certain death, collected a treasure trove of awards both locally and abroad, and monetised ideas for clients ranging from small localised businesses to global megabrands such as Coca-Cola.

But, as is often the case in any form of big business, the further the trio advanced in their careers, the more removed they became from the work.