Bonfire has strengthened its senior leadership team with the appointment of Nicola Wielopolski as creative director and Sinéad Lee as growth director as the agency.
The appointments come on the back of Ardmore Group’s recent strategic investment in Bonfire, establishing the only all-island agency proposition in the Irish market.
Wielopolski joins Bonfire with more than 20 years’ experience in advertising, having worked with a number of leading agencies in South Africa and Ireland.
Her work has been recognised at Cannes Lions, D&AD, the New York Festivals and the Clios, as well as at national awards shows. Career highlights include a Cannes Silver for a campaign for South Africa’s Commission for Gender Equality.
She was also selected for one of 12 places on the Phyllis Project, a global DDB initiative established to increase the number of female creative leaders across the network.
During her career, she has also worked with brands including McDonald’s, Honda, Smart Car, KFC, Converse and Skittles.
Among the campaigns she cites as a career highlight was work for South African telecommunications company Telkom, which helped reposition the business from one of the country’s least-liked brands to one whose advertising was consistently ranked among South Africa’s most popular over a three-year period.
“There’s a real energy at Bonfire right now, and I’m looking forward to bringing my experience and enthusiasm for great ideas to the team,” she said.
Meanwhile, Sinead Lee joins as Bonfire as growth director and will work with senior clients across Bonfire and the wider Ardmore Group, with a particular focus on business, marketing and growth strategy.
She brings more than 25 years’ experience in marketing and communications, spanning agency leadership, brand strategy and business development.
Her career has included senior roles at BBDO Dublin and, most recently, TBWA\Ireland, where she worked with clients including Diageo, Mars, Lidl, eir, EirGrid, Barry’s Tea, Pilgrim’s Foods and IDA Ireland.
In her new role, Lee will draw on the broader capabilities of the Ardmore Group to bring together specialist expertise around client growth and marketing challenges.
“What attracted me to this role is the ambition behind what Bonfire and Ardmore Group are building together,” she said.
“It brings together the agility and entrepreneurial mindset of an independent group with a distinctive mix of specialist capabilities and talent.
“Bonfire is now powered by that wider expertise, allowing us to bring the right people and thinking together around client challenges from the outset. It’s a powerful combination, and I think we have a real opportunity to build something significant in the Irish market.”
Lee will take on the role alongside her independent consultancy, Sinéad Lee Consultancy, through which she will continue to advise her own clients on marketing, brand and growth strategy.
The appointments follow Ardmore Group’s strategic investment in Bonfire, a move which the companies say has created an all-island agency proposition spanning Northern Ireland and the Republic.
The investment gives Ardmore Group a dedicated creative presence in the Republic while adding Bonfire’s creative and effectiveness capabilities to its existing Northern Ireland operations.
