And what an event it was. Much was celebrated including the 20th anniversary of the APEX Awards, communications campaigns that delivered tangible and measured results and talent.

Lowe + Partners Cape Town and The Organ Donor Foundation received top honours with a Gold APEX and the GRAND PRIX for their 'Get me to 21' campaign. Gloo@Ogilvy Johannesburg and First National Bank received a Gold APEX for their FNB ATM Switch campaign. The third Gold of the evening went to Ogilvy & Mather Cape Town and South African Breweries for their Castle Lite – Extra Cold campaign.

The annual APEX Awards recognise performance excellence in communications campaigns entered across three key categories:
  • Launch: Sponsored by the SABC, for brands or services that are less than 12 months old with no significant history of advertising;
  • Change: Sponsored by Sandton Convention Centre, for new campaigns from previously advertised brands that resulted in significant short-term effects on sales and/or behaviour (short term/18 months); and
  • Sustain: Also sponsored by the SABC, for campaigns that benefited a business by maintaining or strengthening a brand over a long period, 36 months.

The full list of 2015 APEX winners is as follows: 
 
Launch

Change

Sustain

  • FoxP2 won a Silver for their FOMO campaign for Ster-Kinekor;
  • OIL @ Lowe + Partners took home a Silver for their Fast growth for Slow-Mag since changing lanes during 2015 with Merck Pharmaceuticals; and
  • Ogivly & Mather Cape Town won a Gold for their work for South African Breweries Castle Lite 'Extra Cold'.

GRAND PRIX

  • Lowe + Partners Cape Town won the GRAND PRIX award for the 'Get me to 21' campaign for the Organ Donor Foundation.

Special Awards

  • The most successful submission for non-profit or charity organisation or cause was Lowe + Partners for 'Get me to 21'; and
  • Gloo@Ogilvy was named the entry that demonstrates the most ingenious response to limited advertising or research funds for their FNB ATM Switch campaign.

Winning an APEX is the ultimate accolade as it is a testament to the importance of investing in advertising and communications when building a successful brand or business. The winners and runners up showcased as the best of breed in the profession.

“APEX champions greater accountability by rewarding communications campaigns that work, sell and resonate in the minds of their target audiences, and in so doing, deliver outstanding results. Thus APEX winners are awarded and celebrated for reaching the proverbial summit within the context of the business of advertising,” says Odette van der Haar, ACA CEO.

APEX awards eight bursaries

This year, eight bursaries were awarded to deserving students from the AAA School of Advertising at the gala event, bringing to a total of 51 the number of APEX bursaries awarded since the launch of the program in 2010. The AAA School of Advertising is the official trade school of the profession and regarded as the birthplace of brilliant. Four bursaries were awarded to students from the AAA School’s Johannesburg campus and four were awarded to students from the Cape Town campus.

"It is a great privilege to applaud the finest creative minds in the business - an opportunity made possible through the investment, generosity and support from APEX key partners SABC and Sandton Convention Centre and sponsors Millward Brown and Unilever."

"Together with our partners, sponsors and contributors on APEX 2015, the ACA has once again been provided with the opportunity to change and improve the lives of deserving young bright minds aspiring to enter the profession. APEX continues to bring credibility to, and confidence in, the business of advertising and communications," concludes van der Haar.

For more information, visit the ACA website.