Fearless adman Mthunzi Plaatjie becomes an AVATAR
Born in Gugulethu, Plaatjie returns home to the Mother City from Jozi to head up AVATAR Agency in the Cape. His challenge? To help make the integrated challenger agency an African great.
Fearless. That’s how adman, Mthunzi Plaatjie, wants to be known. “What sets me apart is my complete lack of respect for change. I’m not talking about change for change’s sake, but change that makes things better,” says Plaatjie, who has just been headhunted by AVATAR Agency to head up the integrated advertising company’s new Cape Town office. “Bringing change doesn’t scare me. I disregard fear and have learned to love bringing about change.”
Plaatjie says that life and business is all about change, so fear in the face of change isn’t useful. “I think it is important to be fearless about applying new technologies, like digital, to make people’s experience of life and brands better. In my world technology is an enabler — it doesn’t replace the human touch, but r a t h e r c o mp l e me n t s a n d c a n enhance it. We need to embrace technology as the great enabler,” he says.
Born and bred in the mother City, Plaatjie leaves the blackowned marketing agency he helped found and grow for eight years in Johannesburg to take up the much-sought-after position at AVATAR. “I was born in Gugulethu and my formative years were spent there, and in K h a y e l i t s h a , b e f o r e my mo m moved to Pinelands,” he says.
When Plaatjie told his mother he wanted to get into advertising, she wasn’t impressed. “I had a tough task convincing my mother that I wanted to go to AAA School of Advertising because the fees were ridiculously high. The tuition cost an arm and a leg, and we didn’t even have the fingers to pay for it,” he laughs. “My mom wanted me to study accounting or law instead, but I persisted. She sacrificed a lot for me, but I was soon offered a position on the Musica Brand Team, and haven’t looked back. I really value that she invested in me,” he says.
The big change that Mthunzi wants to bring to the Cape marketing scene is transformation. “Transformation in the industry has been slow, and here I’m not talking about making business decisions based on pigmentation but about developing a pool of world-class skills across the board. I am talking about diversity and the power to do heavyweight work, and to change the way that advertising is done in Africa, and how African agencies are perceived globally,” he explains.
“Why did I leave the business I started to head up AVATAR’s Cape Town office? I’m excited about helping to grow a company that has real international aspirations,” he says. “We’ve seen a lot of global agencies coming to Africa to snap up local shops; it is time we turned this trend on its head. Why not create an African giant that surpasses some of the biggest advertising shops in the world?” Plaatjie asks.
Integrated agency AVATAR was launched by Zibusiso Mkhwanazi and Veli Ngubane four years ago in Johannesburg, but was soon running campaigns for global brands across scores of African markets. The dream? To create a challenger pan-African advertising agency that would reinvent the industry and go global.
From its early days as a small start-up, AVATAR currently has a team of over 60 creative, technologically adept and innovative thinkers focused on delivering ground-breaking work that differentiates brands and grows businesses across Africa.
“AVATAR is completely unique in its make-up. I haven’t experienced or seen another agency like it. What sets AVATAR apart is the way that Zi and Veli run the business. They are very hands on, very close to the customers and there are no hierarchies. A lot of the bigger advertising agencies in South Africa operate in hierarchies. At AVATAR there isn’t that red tape, or layers of ego — everyone gets around the table and contributes, which means that the best ideas can come from anywhere. This makes the process quicker, more fluid and innovative,” he says.
Plaatjie qualified at AAA School of Advertising and obtained a certificate in journalism from Varsity College before starting his career in advertising at Berry Bush BBDO in Cape Town (now Net#work BBDO). Over the years, he gained experience at top agencies, including The Agency, T B WA, Me t r o p o l i t a n R e p u b l i c and Y&R — as well as media and FMCG companies, holding positions ranging from senior account management to senior marketing management. Plaatjie also brings experience in design and brand development, having launched First Generation Brand Consultancy.
“I t wa s f a i r l y t o u g h f i n d i n g the right candidate for our Cape Town office, because it was critical to us that we matched values with this person,” says Mkhwanazi, chief executive of AVATAR. “It’s not just Mthunzi’s experience that makes him the ideal fit: it is also his passion for Africa and his dedication to creating the kind of experience and advertising that makes a real difference to businesses. We’re incredibly excited about what Mthunzi will be doing to help grow our business in the Cape,” Mk h w a n a z i s a y s , a n d s mi l e s . “We invaded the Mother City in February 2016. I’d now like to warn the agencies there that they will be seeing us at the big pitches.”