Published on: September 17, 2026
Bastion Aotearoa has elevated Holly Dean to Executive Creative Director (ECD) while strengthening its creative team with the appointment of four new creatives across senior and intermediate roles.
In her expanded position, Dean will place greater emphasis on social, creators and earned media, bringing earned-first thinking further into the agency’s creative leadership. The approach is intended to ensure cultural relevance and audience participation are considered at the ideation stage rather than being added later as amplification.
“Holly’s… a brave and passionate partner for me,” said Oliver Green, Chief Creative Officer at Bastion Aotearoa. “Bringing her earned and social expertise further into creative leadership makes our creative product stronger from the outset. It’s a brilliant mix of talent and exactly the kind of team we want to keep building. When you have talent like this, every problem is a playground”
Joining Bastion Aotearoa are senior creatives Bayleigh Way and Molawin Evangelista, along with intermediate designers Jemima Christie-Limbrick and Stella Wilson. The appointments coincide with Zoe Kerr moving into the newly created position of Social Creative.
Way joins Bastion Aotearoa from Droga5 London and brings international experience spanning brands such as Tourism Australia, John Lewis and Mondelēz. Her background includes work across earned, social and integrated campaigns.
Evangelista joins from Previously Unavailable and also operates a boutique design studio and retail space. His experience adds conceptual art direction and filmmaking expertise to the agency’s creative offering.
Christie-Limbrick joins from Milk NZ, while Wilson comes from Colenso BBDO, further expanding Bastion Aotearoa’s design team and its focus on craft.
Meanwhile, Kerr has already begun contributing in her new role, including work on Skinny Mobile’s ‘Savvy Savers’ content series, as well as social-first campaigns for Essano, DoorDash and KFC.
Danny Carlsen, Head of Design at Bastion Aotearoa, said: “We’ve had a massive run of growth across the design business and with the work getting bigger, braver and more ambitious, bringing in seriously good people matters. Jemima and Stella are two huge additions to the Bastion design crew, bringing fresh energy, sharp thinking and a real care for craft. We’re stoked to have them on board and can’t wait to see what we create together.”
The leadership change and new hires form part of Bastion Aotearoa’s wider evolution of its creative offering, as ideas increasingly span advertising, social, earned media and experiences. The agency is bringing together a broader mix of expertise within one creative team to develop work that can adapt across multiple channels.
Toby Sellers, CEO of Bastion Aotearoa, added: “Great agencies are built around great people, and the calibre of talent joining and stepping up within Bastion right now says a lot about where we’re heading.
“Bayleigh, Molawin, Zoe, Jemima and Stella bring new perspectives and serious creative talent to the agency, while Holly has already made an enormous contribution to the work and culture we’re building. Investing in people like this means we can keep raising the standard of what we deliver for our clients and put them in a position of strength.
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