Goldilocks' First Work Features a Westpac Helicopter Made Out of People

Golidlocks -- the Omnicom Oceania bespoke model launched in March -- has built a rescue helicopter out of real people in its first work for Westpac New Zealand.

The spot, which encourages Kiwis to donate to the Westpac Chopper Appeal, opens at a local bake sale raising money for the cause. "Now that's a proper lamington," one man observes, while another asks, "But where's the lamb?"

The townsfolk then band together to "contribute to something bigger" -- hugging, standing on shoulders, bending over backwards, and defying the laws of gravity to create a helicopter. When a phone is held over the scene, it transforms into Westpac's iconic red and yellow rescue chopper. Last year alone, rescue helicopters conducted 9,330 missions.

"When our agency partner Goldilocks suggested building a rescue helicopter made of real people to show that if we all work together, we can create something bigger, our marketing team were equal parts sceptical… and intrigued," the brand wrote on LinkedIn.

​Ahmad Salim -- who co-runs Goldilocks with Dan Wright -- added, "Goldilocks is out of the blocks.

"At Westpac, Together Greater really is about what we can all achieve together and their long standing commitment to The Chopper Appeal is the perfect example of how that culture runs deep.

"We’re really excited about all the new proof points to come, and in the meantime here’s some new work that really makes me smile."

Westpac New Zealand’s chief marketing officer, Sarah Williams, worked with Ahmad and Dan to co-create Goldilocks when she realised she couldn’t achieve the bank’s “vast” ambitions and elevate the work with a pre-existing model.

She didn’t pitch the account. Sarah, Dan, and Ahmad all had stints at Colenso BBDO. Omnicom Oceania CEO Nick Garrett was Colenso’s boss at the time. Dan and Ahmad worked with Nick again at Deloitte, before reuniting again late last year. Six months into his transformation agenda to “future-proof” Omnicom, Nick hired Dan and Ahmad to run The Loom, a newly-created customer advisory business. The pair will now also run Goldilocks, as chief creative experience officer, and CEO, respectively.

Goldilocks will hire its own core team and shapeshift over time, as the bank's needs evolve -- supported by Omnicom Oceania’s stable of agencies and centres of excellence. Its first major hire was general manager Lucy Cole.

“The model's designed so that Sarah and Westpac can be buying outcomes, not a set of skills," said Dan in an exclusive interview with LBB upon Goldilocks' launch.

“I'm excited that the banking category, like so many other categories, is yearning for something new. I think we've got the team and the motivation and the ambition to do that."

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Read more: Westpac Needed Equally-Ambitious Partner. Goldilocks Promised to Be “Just Right”​