About me

Mandie van der Merwe is an Executive Creative Director at M&C Saatchi. Over the last 18 years, she has worked on 3 continents and has been recognised more than 100 times at major local and international award shows, including Cannes, One Show, AWARD, The Loeries and the Australian Effies.

After graduating from art school in Pretoria (South Africa), Mandie, much to the chagrin of her purist art friends, sold her soul to advertising. But, over the span of her career, she's bought it back. The payment has been made, painstakingly, with an unwavering ideal that we can change business and social problems with great, strategic ideas and the care, will and pride to execute them beautifully.

It is this belief that has guided her work on some of the world's biggest brands, including Tourism Australia, Commonwealth Bank of Australia, Fox Sports, Nando's, Tourism New Zealand, David Jones, MINI and Virgin Money.

Beyond the world of advertising, Mandie is a maker. She is an enthusiastic ceramicist and hopes, one day, to own a kiln and have the time to use it.