The Brill Building has won a Bronze award at the international Gerety Awards for its work with the Marie Keating Foundation and The Breathless Collection, its campaign to raise awareness of the early symptoms of lung cancer.
The Dublin agency picked up the award for Product and Packaging Design in the Work For Good category, making it the only Irish creative agency to win at this year’s awards. The campaign had secured four shortlist places at the international competition.
It is the second Gerety Awards win for The Brill Building.
The Breathless Collection is a capsule collection of clothing and accessories designed to physically replicate some of the early symptoms experienced by people with lung cancer, including feelings of weight, restriction and exhaustion.
Developed in conjunction with Irish oncologists and lung cancer survivors, the collection includes a gilet, scarf, tote bag, shoes and coffee keep-cup. Each item was designed to give wearers an insight into symptoms that can often go unnoticed before a diagnosis.
According to the agency, the campaign has become the foundation’s most successful lung cancer innovation to date. Created with a budget of €60,000 across creative, production and media, it generated close to eight million in total PR reach nationally during its launch month.
During International Lung Cancer Awareness Month, the collection was brought to boutiques around Ireland and incorporated into the Marie Keating Foundation’s mobile information unit, allowing members of the public and public figures to experience what the campaign described as “walking in the shoes” of someone living with undiagnosed lung cancer.
Commenting on the win, creative and campaign lead for The Brill Building said “It’s always great to see original innovation coming out of Ireland recognised at a global level.
“When the standard of advertising, product and packaging design worldwide gets higher and higher every year, being able to make work that responds to a brief with imagination, creativity and results in real world impact for the charity and all those affected by lung cancer is a privilege. As an independent agency, it’s particularly rewarding to have our work – and all those of our talented and amazing crew and collaborators be commended for excellence in this way.”
The campaign also reached Leinster House when TD Catherine Ardagh wore pieces from the collection while raising a parliamentary question in the Dáil calling for the introduction of a National Lung Cancer Screening Programme.
“By the end of the day, I could feel the literal weight of what this campaign represents,” Ardagh said. “We must act — early detection gives people a chance of better outcomes,”she said.
The Gerety Awards use all-female juries to judge advertising and marketing work from around the world. More than 250 judges from over 50 countries took part in this year’s competition across advertising, marketing, production, design and media.
The 2026 awards included four Grand Prix, 34 Gold, 69 Silver and 75 Bronze awards, with winning work coming from countries including the UK, Germany, Singapore, Mexico, Argentina and France.
Three campaigns received Grand Prix recognition: No Project Without Drama, The Count and The KitKat Heist, with the latter winning two Grand Prix.
See all the winners at https://www.geretyawards.com/winners/2026
