The Financial Mail AdFocus Awards 2025 shortlist is out!

The Financial Mail AdFocus Awards shortlist is out (Image supplied)

This follows a record number of entries this year, double that of 2024.

“The sheer volume and exceptional quality of submissions presented our jury with an incredibly challenging, yet ultimately rewarding, task says Vicki Buys, managing director, Ogilvy, and this year’s FM AdFocus Awards chairperson.

This year’s theme Creative Capital: Building Agency Value in a Complex World reflects the evolution of agencies from “just” creative shops to businesses that build value through strategic and impact creativity.

“This robust engagement from the industry is a powerful testament to the awards' stature and the compelling resonance of our 2025 theme, which champions agencies that don’t just create, but truly perform,” says Buys.

She adds, “It's evident that the industry is mastering the power of Creative Capital, demonstrating how financial performance, talent acquisition, culture, and resilience drive both agency value and deliver tangible client ROI through strategic creativity and business acumen.

She highlights, “What's particularly exciting is the emergence of many new agency names among the entries, signalling a vibrant and evolving landscape of talent and innovation.”

Unique in the creative industry awards space, the AdFocus Awards reward agencies and how they are run, from their people to their systems and clients.

The FM AdFocus 2025 Shortlist

(in Alphabetical order)

AdFocus Small Agency of the Year

Boundless
Halo
Retroviral

AdFocus Medium Agency of the Year

Clockwork
McCann Jhb
The Odd Number

AdFocus Large Agency of the Year

Joe Public
M&C Saatchi Abel
Ogilvy

AdFocus PR Agency of the Year

Magna Carta
Ogilvy PR
Razor PR

AdFocus Specialised of the Year

Design Bridge and Partner
MscSports
Ogilvy One

AdFocus Media Agency of the Year

Carat
Connect
Juno

AdFocus Partnership of the Year

(Sponsored by IAS - Independent Agency Search and Selection Company)

99c and Checkers
The MediaShop and Shoprite Checkers
Ogilvy SA and Volkswagen

AdFocus African Impact Award

Dentsu
M&C Saatchi – Up& Up Group
TBWA

AdFocus Transformation Award

Lobengula
Ogilvy
Park Advertising

AdFocus Group of the Year

Dentsu
M&C Saatchi – Up& Up Group
Ogilvy

AdFocus Student of the Year

Abigael Cassell - Cape Town Creative Academy
Alice Bosch - Cape Town Creative Academy
Danica Viljoen - Vega Cape Town

The winners of these awards, as well as of the Agency of the Year, Lifetime Achiever, Industry of the Year and Shapeshifter categories, will be announced at a gala dinner on November 26.

Tickets to this event will go on sale shortly — keep an eye on the AdFocus Awards website for details.