3 IIE-Vega alumni ranked among Africa’s top creative talent

Three Independent Institute of Education (IIE)-Vega alumni are flying the school’s flag high after their outstanding performance in the recently released 2024 Loeries official rankings.

Brandon Govender, postgraduate diploma in copywriting from IIE-Vega in Bordeaux, and executive creative director at Joe Public in Durban, was ranked number four in Africa and the Middle East. Art director at Joe Public Zainab Mitha was ranked number two, while Joe Public copywriter Jasmin Vandersteen secured the third spot in the region.

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This places them among the top-ranked professionals in their respective fields in South Africa. Joe Public also claimed the title of number one agency in Africa and the Middle East.

The annual Loeries official rankings is a trusted industry benchmark which celebrates the agencies, brands, and individuals that set new creative standards. IIE-Vega has a strong track record of developing top creative talent. The rankings are based on cumulative scores from awarded Loerie Awards entries, and it reflects the exceptional quality of work submitted across disciplines.

Govender explained that the highlight was seeing his team excel. “We have a growth mindset as an agency. Many say they want to grow people, but we actually do it, and the results speak for themselves. Our group goal is to be the number one creative agency in the world by 2030.

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“It’s ambitious but so was becoming the top agency in Africa and the Middle East, and we did that. Staying at the top is harder than getting there, but we’re committed to making it happen.”

His introduction to advertising came during his BCom studies when a copywriter visited their marketing lecture. He was instantly hooked. “I had no idea advertising was a career option. I completed my degree, explored my options and found IIE-Vega, which was still in its early days. It was a perfect match. The postgraduate diploma in copywriting was tough but rewarding, and my lecturers were a huge help.”

All three alumni named: Honouring the Class of 76, a Youth Day campaign for YouthX by Nedbank, as their most meaningful project. The campaign, which earned seven of the team’s 11 awards – including four Golds – at the Loeries in 2024, paid tribute to the Soweto uprising victims who were never able to fulfil their potential.

Vandersteen described the campaign as deeply moving. She added that there was so much behind the scenes work, which included tracking down the youth’s next of kin using old phone books. “It was all worth it in the end when we met parents who had lost their children in the march and saw how much this moment meant to them.”

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