Ogilvy South Africa is bidding farewell to Group Managing Director Luca Gallarelli, as the industry leader takes leave of the agency 17 years after he first joined.
Gallarelli joined Ogilvy South Africa in 2002 as an account executive, straight from the AAA School of Advertising. Besides a two-year stint at the Jupiter Drawing Room, Gallarelli has spent his entire working career at Ogilvy, a journey that eventually led to him running Ogilvy Cape Town as Managing Director for five years, before assuming his current role. Under his leadership, Ogilvy Cape Town achieved both commercial and creative success, including numerous years as South Africa’s number-one creative
agency, numerous Loeries Grands Prix and ultimately a Cannes Grand Prix.
During his time at Ogilvy, Gallarelli worked on several iconic local and international brands such as SAB, Mondelez, Investec, Audi, Volkswagen, Unilever, Coca-Cola, Gumtree, Investec and KFC, among others.
Born in Port Elizabeth, in the Eastern Cape, Gallarelli completed a computer-science degree at Nelson Mandela University before shifting his focus to the world of advertising.
Ogilvy CEO Alistair Mokoena paid tribute to Gallarelli for his contribution to Ogilvy.
“Luca has dedicated most of his working career to Ogilvy, and we will always be grateful for that. He’s part of the DNA here and we are sad to see him go,” he said. “We will miss his love for creativity, his passion for people, his respect for team work and his commitment to client relationships. Luca is a great marketer and we have no doubt that he will be successful in his next adventure.”