AdWeek's Creative 100
Whether creating cinematic ads with heart, helping a client turn waste into warmth for needy children or advocating for LGBT acceptance in sports, Gus Johnston is a creative who brings both passion and purpose to everything he does.
Much of his most notable work at VB&P has been in the hotel space, a category not typically known for soul-lifting ideas. As part of launching the Go Beyond campaign for Sheraton Hotels, he created the visually compelling spot “The Deep” about the lengths that hotel employees would go to for guests.
For sister brand Westin Hotels, Johnston helped launch the new global brand platform “Let’s Rise,” but best of all, he conceived and led ThreadForward, a first-of-its-kind program that collects, processes and reweaves hotel bed linens into pajamas for children in need.
“Around 30,000 pounds of bed linen from 50 Westin hotel properties around the world were collected, processed and then rewoven into children’s pajamas,” he says. “From concept to design and collaborating with a raft of specialized manufacturers, this project required an extraordinary commitment from a wide range of partners. Being part of a collaborative effort to bring something genuinely meaningful into the world made this project extra special for me.”
A longtime hockey player, Johnston has been a vocal advocate for better gender balance and LGBT acceptance in sports, in his native Australia and around the world.
Congrats to Gus, and be sure to check out the full list here!