Curriculum Vitae
Nicholas KR Gertsch
Date of birth
Language
ID number
Nationality
Marital Status
Phone
Email
29 February 1988
English-
South African
Married
--
Education- – 2010
Postgraduate Diploma Copywriting, AAA School of Advertising
Bachelor of Arts Degree in English Studies, University of Pretoria
2002 – 2006
Secondary Education, Crawford College Pretoria
Key Skills
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Problem solving
Keeping a cool head under pressure
Patience
Editing
Briefing and managing creative resources
Writing, creative ideation and brainstorming
Distilling complex ideas into their core information
Analysing research and data
Looking beyond the brief to address business problems
Work Experience
2019 - Present
Name of Company:
Nature of Business:
Dates of Employment:
Position:
Publicis Groupe (Saatchi & Saatchi Cape Town)
Advertising
February 2019 - Present
Senior Copywriter > Creative Director
Clients:
Visa, Nestlé, Unilever, Game Stores, Old Mutual
Synopsis: My time at the Publicis Groupe began at Arc as a freelance senior copywriter
handling digital communication for a number of large brands. Given more responsibility, I began
managing a small team on these accounts before being entrusted with the Creative Director
position on Visa’s BTL account in mid-2019 (initially with Leo Burnett and then with Saatchi &
Saatchi Cape Town). Since then I have conceptualised and overseen many projects and
campaigns, come to understand the nuances of managing creative resources and built a strong
relationship with my client.
2017 - 2018 (Freelance contracts)
Name of Companies: Rogue Advertising, Geometry Global, Arc, private work
Nature of Business:
Advertising
Dates of Employment:
August 2017 - January 2019
Position:
Senior Copywriter
Clients:
DStv, BP, Nestlé (Milo, Cremora), Barclays, Absa, Italtile, Bidvest,
1Life, Sage, Nestlé, Unilever, Game Stores
Synopsis: With my wife receiving a job offer in Johannesburg, I took the opportunity to
freelance at a number of different agencies in the city. Here I endeavoured to get to know new
studios, clients, colleagues, dynamics and workflows. The experience taught me many, many
things, opened new relationships and forced me to hone my copywriting skills on a diverse array
of clients from vastly different sectors.
2016 - 2017
Name of Company:
Nature of Business:
Dates of Employment:
Position:
Haas Advertising
Advertising
November 2016 - July 2017
Senior Copywriter
Clients:
Spur, Varsity Sports, Cape Town Waterfront, Bookmark
Synopsis: After two years of digital advertising I yearned for the challenge of working on TV and
radio commercials. I was contacted by Francois de Villiers, ex-ECD of DraftFCB, to join him on
the Spur account. We worked as a team on all of Spur’s above-the-line communication. I was
fortunate that the position gave me the opportunity to work on, in an incredibly hands-on
manner, four TV commercials and associated radio campaigns in only a few months.
2014 - 2016
Name of Company:
Nature of Business:
Dates of Employment:
Isobar South Africa
Digital Advertising
September 2014 - October 2016
Position:
Junior > Mid Copywriter
Clients:
Adidas, Opel, Huawei, African Extracts
Synopsis: At Isobar I learnt the ins and outs of digital, including social media content, social
strategy and gained an understanding of the far broader realm of digital media. Creatively, I was
the sole writer on several accounts, most notably Adidas and Opel. I worked closely with our
design team and social strategist, in many cases as the lead creative, to create content and
campaigns that stood out from the rest.
2012 - 2014
Name of Company:
Nature of Business:
OFyt Marketing and Communication
Advertising
Dates of Employment:
Position:
Clients:
April 2012 - August 2014
Copywriting Intern > Junior Copywriter
Kia Motors, ADT, The Crazy Store, Distell
Synopsis: I began at OFyt as an intern, transitioning to a full-time junior copywriter. Led by two
stalwarts from the heyday of Ogilvy & Mather Rightford Searle-Tripp & Makin, Jonathan Shubitz
and Gary Leih, I was given an incredible, albeit tough, introduction to the industry. In that time I
worked on many pitches, wrote copy for a broad array of brands including Kia Motors, ADT, Old
Buck Gin, The Crazy Store and won a submission in the 2014 Times Live Creative Challenge.
2010 - 2012
Name of Company:
Nature of Business:
Dates of Employment:
Position:
Expert English Editors
Language Editing
July 2010 – 2012
Editor
Synopsis: For two years I worked part-time as an English language editor on a very broad array
of documents with a focus on academic work. This entailed editing the grammar, flow and style
of huge documents, mainly Honours and Masters thesis papers. These long-form documents
were an excellent challenge and helped hone my attention to detail and ability to see the core
message of what needed to be communicated.
Interests
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Film and visual media
Gardening, plants and horticulture
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Self-sustainability and ecological design
Technology and its influence on human behaviour
Technology companies and their influence on culture
Urban and spatial planning and design
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Graphic design
Illustration
Reform, design, discussion and solutions that address inequality
Key References
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Jason Ray, Managing Director, Publicis Groupe (-
Francois de Villiers, Creative Director, Joe Public (-
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Erasmus (Bart) Sihin, Creative Partner, Bain & Bunkell (-
Paul Newman, Founder & COO, OFyt (-
