Ben Coulson has departed Dentsu Creative after two years as chief creative officer for ANZ.
Coulson joined the creative agency in September 2023 and helmed campaigns for brands such as nib with ‘Potentially Amazing and The Iconic’s ‘Got You Looking’.
Brett Colliver, co-CCO of Dentsu Creative NZ, will lead creative across Australia and NZ until Coulson’s is found.
Kirsty Muddle, CEO of Practices and Products in ANZ, thanked Coulson for his work in a statement.
“Ben has moved on from our team, and we thank him for his contribution and his passion around the craft. We wish him well for what’s next and he remains a good friend of this business.
“We are lucky we have two revered creative leaders in our region, Titanium’s, Pencils and Lion winning capability in Brett Colliver and Mike Felix,” she added.
“They’ve done some notable work whilst they’ve been here at dentsu over that last 24 months and Brett will step into the Creative Leadership role for Australia as an interim step.”
Mediaweek has contacted Coulson for comment
Coulson’s career spans roles in North America, UK, Europe, Asia, New Zealand and Australia. He was formerly chief creative officer of HERO/McCann, Clemenger BBDO, VMLY&R, and George Patterson, where each agency rose to become Agency of the Year on multiple occasions.
He has worked on big brands such as Tourism Australia, Telstra, Qantas, Toyota, Cadbury, Coke, Frucor Suntory, Burger King, Schweppes, Corona, Carlton United Breweries, AFL, Australian Defence Force, Mastercard, Visa, Menulog, Microsoft, eBay, Unilever, GSK, Monash Uni, Melbourne Uni, Wrigley’s, Cottees, Mars, & Vegemite.
Coulson is among Australia’s most celebrated and accoladed creative leaders of the past decade, he has been twice been recognised in the top five CCOs in the world at the Cannes Festival, and in the Top 10 CCOs in the world on The Won Report.
Coulson has also been recognised with both Cannes & D&AD Agency of the year titles, has three times won ANZ network of the year at Cannes and Spikes, and most awarded agency in APAC at the One Show. Additionally, he’s won multiple Grande Prix, Best of Show and Grande Effies.
Top image: Ben Coulson and Brett Colliver