2024 Lifetime Achievement Award

Karim Yusuf, aka 'Kaz'

Karim Yusuf, aka "Kaz" headshot

Location • Title

Dubai • Creative Director

Portfolio

https://kazbasha.com

One-sentence bio

Creative from three continents. Maker of Nina Alexandra. Founder of Adbasha. Creator of awesome ideas for global brands.

Creative philosophy or approach

Dig for information. Look for inspiration. Make surprising connections. Keep trying until you get it. Trust your gut. If it makes others uncomfortable, good! Partner with the best talent, not whoever’s available. Keep on perfecting it for as long as possible. Brag about it to your mates. Be proud and have fun.

Recent work I’m proud of

For Axe deodorant, we asked fans to tell us who they wanted to ask out on Valentine’s. It had to be someone they had a story with. Leading up to the big day, we turned those stories into songs fans could use to ask out their dates. I love this campaign because we went out of our way for our fans, the songs were catchy and so personalized, our fans couldn’t believe it, and the best result of all was that one of our fans actually got married and thanked us later for helping hook him up.

Link to campaign: https://kazbasha.com/portfolio/axe-wingman-2/

Karim Yusuf, aka "Kaz" recent work

Recent work I admired

Bose recently released a video encouraging neighbors to #StayNoisy because that means they are staying safe. It was beautifully written, insightful, refreshing, positive and a great way to promote their noise cancelling headphones.

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