Global agency veterans launch 100% female-owned collective built to challenge convention – unapologetically

A new era in creativity has arrived with the launch of MAAD Collective, a 100% female-owned and operated, independent creative collective built for brands, governments, NGOs, and social enterprises ready to challenge the status quo. Founders Mehreen Ahmed and Angela Denise, with decades of global and local experience, particularly in regional Asia Pacific, have built a purpose-driven collective that tackles business problems at their core.

By combining strategy, storytelling, and design, MAAD Collective partners with organisations navigating crises, seeking reinvention, or striving for meaningful cultural and social progress – all while leaving traditional agency conventions at the door.

MAAD Collective Co-founder and Creative Director Angela Denise has spent over 20 years in New York’s top agencies crafting strategically led work across beauty, retail, sneakers and snacks for brands including Disney, Keds, Procter & Gamble, Gerber and Peloton. Her work has launched startups, revitalised established brands, and earned recognition from the Clios, The One Show, Lürzer’s Archive and the Effies.

Moving from New York to Sydney mid-COVID while pregnant with her daughter – alongside her partner – marked the beginning of a new chapter, bringing a global lens and a more considered point of view to the work she creates today.

Says Denise: “We built MAAD to create a way of working that challenges the norm and doesn’t shrink when life expands – a model that makes space for the work, our families, and the chaos that comes with both. All while letting us create work we’re genuinely proud of. We get to the real problem quickly, think strategically, and bring in global minds when it makes the idea stronger. It keeps the process clear and efficient, for us and for our clients.”

Meanwhile, MAAD Collective Co-founder and Business Director Mehreen Ahmed brings a deep passion for partnering with brands to solve complex business problems. She’s built her career across agencies including Ogilvy Singapore, Wieden+Kennedy Shanghai, and MullenLowe Singapore, working on global and regional APAC accounts such as Procter & Gamble, Unilever and Coca-Cola. Seven years ago, she launched her own FMCG brand, WeLove Pizza, which has since become a national category leader in independent grocery.

Says Ahmed: “Having spent time both agency side and in a manufacturing start-up launching a national food brand, I have an even greater appreciation and understanding of the Marketers’ agenda and that of the rest of the C-Suite. MAAD Collective is not afraid to ‘burn the brief’ and get deeper into a client’s business to develop realistic solutions.”

MAAD Collective goes beyond the initial ask, uncovering real business problems, whether it’s a law firm needing a brand refresh or a global retail campaign. The collective is flexible, with project teams assembled from a global network of top-tier talent for individual business needs, not cookie-cutter agency structures.

MAAD Collective has already begun working with major global brands, including Onitsuka Tiger, who are experiencing a global and Australian resurgence and Buttar, Caldwell & Co. a boutique Sydney-based law firm recently celebrating 25 years. The collective partnered with the retail brand to open their flagship store in Sydney, and have since been named the lead agency for in-store campaigns.

Says Theo Kalivas AU Country Manager Onitsuka Tiger: “From the moment we began working with MAAD, it was clear they genuinely care about our brand and our ambition. They’re quick thinkers and they instinctively understand how to bring a global brand to life locally. We’re excited to keep growing this partnership into 2026 and beyond.”

MAAD Collective is based in Sydney, operates globally, and is ready to partner with organisations looking to rewrite the rules.