Derrick creative agency

PORTFOLIO

Building brand value in a category nobody notices.

Strategy
Design
Research
Creative Strategy
Film and Video

PORTFOLIO

Building brand value in a category nobody notices.

Strategy
Design
Research
Creative Strategy
Film and Video

WHAT MATTERED

Recycling was still perceived as functional, fragmented and largely invisible to everyday consumers. We needed to humanise the system, demonstrate momentum, and position recycling as a collective national effort worth participating in.

INSIGHTS

Behind every tonne of recycled material, you’ll find a network of individuals, entrepreneurs, collectors, innovators and corporates, quietly transforming waste into opportunity. The annual Petco awards already celebrated these contributions. But the reach was limited. We needed to tell these stories at scale to harness their potential to change perceptions, moving recycling as obligation to recycling as progress.
“WHEN YOU FOLLOW A PLASTIC BOTTLE FAR ENOUGH, YOU STOP SEEING TRASH AND START SEEING A NETWORK OF HUMAN AMBITION HOLDING AN ENTIRE ECONOMY TOGETHER.”

Livio Tronchin, Executive Creative Director, Derrick

BRAND JOURNEY

On the journey to establishing a more distinctive and confident identity for Petco, we needed to add a voice to that identity. Not through polished corporate messaging, but through authentic and emotive storytelling.

OUR SOLUTION - A DOCU-SERIES

We transformed what was historically content created simply for the Petco awards into an emotive docuseries. We turned finalists and winners into the protagonists of a multi-episode documentary series. It proved so popular that it continued into 3 seasons; “Message in a Bottle”, “Sorted”, and “Unpack”.

A NATIONWIDE ROAD TRIP IN SEARCH OF STORIES

From Mahikeng to Phalaborwa, Rosebank to the Valley of a Thousand Hills, we travelled across South Africa capturing the full spectrum of the recycling value chain. Each location added depth, context and texture to the broader story. The series highlighted entrepreneurial grit, community-driven initiatives and corporate innovation, revealing a system powered as much by people as by process.

REFRAMING WASTE

At the core of every episode was the simple, yet powerful idea that plastic bottles are not trash; they are resources.
Watch Season 1
Watch Season 2
Watch Season 3

IMPACT

The series expanded Petco’s reach beyond industry stakeholders to a broader public audience, making the collection and recycling value chain visible, relatable and human. It reframed recycling as a story of optimism and agency, one built on perseverance, collaboration and shared responsibility. Most importantly, it reinforced a collective belief: that through thoughtful action and strong partnerships, South Africans are transforming waste into extraordinary value, at scale.
Total YouTube views
> M
100% VTR
%
Provinces
Seasons

PRESS

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