2degrees picks TBWA to replace DDB as Roy Ong departs

The team at TBWA will be shifting their mobile accounts to 2degrees. Photo/Supplied.

Kiwi telco 2degrees has announced the appointment of TBWA as its new creative agency.

This sees the Auckland-based ad shop, dubbed the "disruption company", take the place of DDB, which parted ways with the company after taking over the Vodafone account.

The final stages of the pitch came down to TBWA and Saatchi & Saatchi.

"In the last week we've had a sharp focus on the task at hand. It's an important decision to get right," said 2degrees chief marketing and insights officer Roy Ong.

Ong's choice of 2degrees takes the brand back to where it all began.

"They were with us at the start when we launched, and we're delighted they'll be by our side in 2019 as we celebrate our 10th birthday," said Ong.

It will see 2degrees once again collaborating with TBWA chief creative officer Shane Bradnick, who previously worked as the executive creative director at DDB.

Ong said the partnership between Bradnick and TBWA managing director Catherine Harris was integral to the win.

This appointment of the agency will be the last act of Ong's in his role at 2degrees.

He will be departing the company to return to his native Malaysia to be closer to his family as he takes on the role of chief marketing and innovation officer at national telco Axiata Celcom.

2degrees CMO Roy Ong will be leaving the business. Photo/Supplied.

Ong's tenure stretches back to February 2016, when he was brought in to replace long-serving chief marketing officer Malcolm Phillipps.

Ong appointed DDB to the 2degrees account in September 2017, with the agency taking over from Special Group.

The telco is yet to announce a replacement for Ong. Head of brand and communications Ben Wheeler will manage the relationship until a new marketing boss is found.