According to Bradly Howland, CEO of Alkemi Collective, storytelling has remained the bedrock of the agency.

"When HWB Communications started in the late 1990s, it offered a traditional PR and media relations service to its clients. As things have changed, so have we. Today, creating impactful narratives that resonate with people has meant we've had to do so much more. We believe our new brand reflects this truth," adds Howland. 

Howland says that the rebrand is more than just a name change and that the agency has completely transformed itself to meet the changing market and client needs head-on.

"As a fully integrated marketing agency, we've become a plug-and-play marketing team to support brands and help them tell their stories to the people that matter to them most," Howland says. 

Appointed in March 2022, Howland has been focused on a strong turnaround strategy for the business to ensure that it recovers from its pandemic losses and grows into one of the country's leading agencies for the follwoing services:
  • marketing
  • communications
  • digital, and
  • creative. 

The agency says that as part of these efforts, the agency concluded an M&A deal at the end of 2022 with Breakout Marketing & Communications that allowed it to grow its team of specialists and establish a JHB office.

"In today's ever-shifting business landscape, Alkemi Collective stands as a beacon of transformation, where ethics and innovation merge. We're not just telling stories; we're fostering connections, influencing change and creating a lasting impact for the brands we work with," says deputy CEO and former breakout director Kgadi Mpobane.

"I stand committed to driving this vision forward, ensuring we not only adapt to change but become the catalysts for it — championing a new era of communications grounded in authenticity, inclusivity and transformative action," adds Mpobane.

"We've digitised our business and improved our systems, we've grown our team, adding new skills to the agency and we've redefined our values and culture," adds Howland.

The agency says that collective efforts have meant that the agency has grown from 12 to 23 full-time team members over the last year.

"As we grow, we've learned that we can't do and be everything for everyone. It's why we've been on a mission to find the right industry partners to collaborate with. Doing so has allowed us to expand our services to clients and increase revenue channels," Howland says.

Elaborating on the choice of the new name, Howland says modern, contemporary alchemy is the process of transforming conditions for the better, changing one thing into another, taking something ordinary and elevating it into something extraordinary.

"On a spiritual level, alchemy is the art of illumination, inner liberation and awakening to our true nature. This symbolises and perfectly captures who we are and what we do for our clients and the brands we work with. Ultimately, alchemy is concerned with transformation and change —  and if any business is going through a process of change and transformation, it's us," Howland adds.

"True transformation takes guts," concludes Howland. "It is also what we do best. With a bit of science and a dash of magic, we are transforming our organisation, our people, our clients, and their brands."

For more information, visit www.alkemi.global. You can also follow Alkemi Collective on Facebook or on Instagram.