Louise Johnston
Having found her passion in the advertising industry some 26 years ago, Louise has held a number of positions in the sector, beginning her career in account management before working her way up the ranks into agency management.
Louise Johnston comes to Grey with an abundance of experience having recently held the position of Managing Director at DDB South Africa for the past 6 years. Over the course of her career she has held prominent roles at agencies such as Y&R, DraftFCB, Ogilvy and Roots (Tanzania).
“I am delighted to join the Grey team. I believe that Grey is one of the few agencies on a rapid growth trajectory having recently won significant new business off the back of a creative revival under the stewardship of Chief Creative Officer, Fran Luckin. I admire the type of work the agency is doing such as the recent award-winning Gillette Gogo Nozizwe campaign which connects with people in very deep and significant ways,” comments Johnston.
“Our ambition is to be the most progressive, pioneering, creative company in the world. To achieve that ambition, we must continue to attract the very best talent. We are delighted to have Louise on the team. As an experienced agency leader, with award-winning campaigns like FNB 'Steve' on her résumé, Louise will add immense value to our people and to our clients,” says Paul Jackson, CEO Grey Advertising Africa.
“The idea of working alongside the experienced Grey leadership really excites me. I find their ambition for the agency both energising and challenging. Grey is on a mission to create the most admired agency network on the African continent, with creativity at the core, and that’s a mission I want to be part of.”
“Looking to 2020 and beyond, Johnston believes that agencies need to be recognised more and more for the value of their advice and the creative business solutions they bring to their clients. To do that, we need to focus on attracting and developing talent as an absolute priority, which is something I am really passionate about. I invest a lot of my time in mentorship and training because some of the proudest moments in my career have been watching young people that I have nurtured over the years go on to do great things,” says Johnston.
