More Than One Model In The Sea
Pop the hood of The Warehouse Group’s headquarters on Auckland’s North Shore and you’ll see its studio space and marketing department is buzzing.
Thirty-nine creatives make up an in-house agency and a hire drive is set to see it turn into about 45 by the end of the year.
The Warehouse Group is one of a number of organisations locally and internationally that has brought creative and production capabilities, that have resided in agencies, inside its four walls.
Control and cost-saving are to be gained by making the move, and helping head up The Warehouse Group’s efforts is Andrew Berglund, its new executive creative director.
The title has also spread its wings to fly beyond the agency nest and when it landed at The Warehouse Group it’s just one of a number of changes afoot – Berglund thinks of it as a “well-funded start-up”.
Alongside the increase in staff, the strategic creative thinking will also grow to match the production capability in-house that is currently 70 percent of the division’s focus.
“We are still predominantly production-focused because of the legacy of the in-house studio and I would like to move it to a point where we get 50:50 concept, strategic thinking:production.”
And beyond just coming up with ideas, Berglund and the team have an ambition to do live broadcasts, film-making and radio – “you name it,” he says.
Berglund joined the organisation to lead the internal and external creative teams and agency relationships, crossing over from agency side to do so.
His career has seen him work in a global executive creative director position at WPP Group, lead Samsung’s in-house creative agency Cheil Worldwide, and most recently be chief creative officer and founder of Human. International, based out of Amsterdam and Seoul.
When asked what led him back to New Zealand and into The Warehouse Group he says it was New Zealand’s innovation, with the likes of Soul Machines’ work in the AI space that piqued his interest.
And when he saw what Jonathan Waecker, The Warehouse Group’s chief marketing officer as of November last year, was building in-house, Berglund saw an opportunity to get involved.
However, it couldn’t just be any organisation Berglund would go in-house for, pointing out The Warehouse Group’s breadth of brands was an attractive offer.
“If I came here and it was a one trick pony, I would have got bored quickly. I crave the diversity. There might be some creatives that enjoy the one brand but for me personally, the attraction with The Warehouse Group is its portfolio diversity.
“There are four very diverse brands – The Warehouse and Warehouse Stationery are
