Advertising Associates and Thinkerbell strike Pitch-Chella gold

The Independent Media Agencies Australia has named Advertising Associates and Thinkerbell joint winners of its biggest Pitch-Chella competition to date.

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The two agencies shared first place after developing national media campaigns for anti-bullying organisation You Can Sit With Me. Slingshot finished third, while Reload Media received a highly commended recognition.

Who won Pitch-Chella 2026?

• Joint first: Advertising Associates — Jeremy O’Connell, Emily Dunne, Sam Christie-Sherill and Brigh Robinson
• Joint first: Thinkerbell — Eduarda Cuadros Marquez and Erin Beers
• Third: Slingshot — Neha Sharma and Anna Nagpaul
• Highly commended: Reload Media — Cleo Cox-Lawson, Drew Hart, Yashi Wadiwala and Harriet Wing

The finalists were tasked with building awareness and community engagement for You Can Sit With Me. The organisation works to prevent bullying and promote inclusion among Australian children.

Winning ideas take inclusion beyond schools

Advertising Associates proposed a partnership with the Matildas to take the charity’s message into the national conversation. Its concept centred on the line: “One team, one cause, one colour and one message: you belong here.”

The campaign would use radio, outdoor, digital, social media and school activations. The agency said the Matildas’ cultural influence and engaged fan base could extend the message beyond classrooms.

Thinkerbell focused on building You Can Sit With Me’s authority among school leaders and parents. Its strategy targeted audiences at stadiums, during school commutes and through parenting podcasts.

Ideas included adding a You Can Sit With Me pledge to Ticketek’s seat-selection process. The agency also proposed yellow seating at schools to allow educators to signal their commitment to preventing bullying.

Record field puts emerging talent to the test

Now in its third year, Pitch-Chella attracted a record 24 teams. Eight finalists presented their campaigns to a judging panel of marketing and media leaders.

The panel included Jenny Parkes, Managing Director of Audience360; Steven Wright, Business Director and Global Media Lead at TrinityP3; and Adam Hickey, Founder of Orand.

Sophie Sparks, Founder and CEO of You Can Sit With Me, also joined the panel.

“As an organisation, our vision is simple: to ensure every child walks through the school gates knowing they are safe, accepted and able to reach their full potential,” Sparks said.

She said the teams had taken the time to understand the organisation’s mission and challenges. Their campaigns aimed to lift awareness while making inclusion part of a broader national discussion.

Sam Buchanan, CEO of IMAA, said: “The standard of this year’s winning pitches was exceptional.

“Each team brought a unique perspective and a truly outstanding level of preparation and professionalism to their pitches.”

Buchanan said the competition reflected the strength of Australia’s independent agency sector and its emerging talent.

The winners were announced at Sydney’s Beresford Hotel on Thursday, 30 July. Participants, IMAA members and industry partners attended the ceremony.

The 2026 program was led by a steering committee featuring Lisa Blackshaw from Co.gency and Taylor Fielding from TFM, alongside the IMAA team.

Audience360 served as gold sponsor. Supporting sponsors included Are Media, Channel Factory, News Australia, Meta, Microsoft Advertising, Snapchat and Taboola.

More information is available through the Pitch-Chella website.

Top image: Advertising Associates take home Pitch-Chella gold