APAC Effies spotlight India’s dominance as Ogilvy, The Womb, and St. Jude take top honours

Marketers and agency leaders from across Asia Pacific convened in Singapore last week for the region’s annual celebration of marketing effectiveness. The 2025 Asia Pacific Effie Awards recognised 81 winning campaigns out of 123 finalists, underscoring both the competitive intensity and shifting creative strategies across markets.

The jury handed out a total of 12 Golds, 31 Silvers and 48 Bronzes to work spanning 12 territories. Beyond the metals, the evening highlighted regional power balances, India’s continued strength, and the effectiveness of storytelling rooted in cultural and social issues.

Lex Bradshaw-Zanger, 2025 Awards Chairperson, contextualised the wins within broader industry goals. “Winning an Effie is a symbol of marketing excellence—the gold-standard. The competition and the awards gala tonight is a steadfast reminder of the power incredible insights, ideas and strategy have in delivering phenomenal results for people, brands, and communities. I’m honoured to announce the results chosen by our judges; it is an amazing achievement to be recognised by peers all around the region,” he said.

His comments reflected the dual purpose of the awards: to acknowledge short-term campaign effectiveness while contributing to a longer-term body of evidence on how strategy and creativity drive business and social outcomes.

India at the top of the table

India finished first in the country rankings with 33 awards, well ahead of Australia with 13, while New Zealand and Singapore tied at six metals each. The event also recorded a milestone for Sri Lanka, which entered the APAC Effie history books with its first win. The campaign Relive the Epic of The Ramayana Trail, created by SriLankan Airlines with Phoenix Ogilvy O&M, marked the country’s breakthrough at the regional competition.

Ogilvy Mumbai led the Indian tally, winning Agency of the Year for the third time. Its campaigns The Impossible Choice and From Handwash Rebels to Handwash Legends powered its results, contributing to three Golds, three Silvers and three Bronzes. The Mumbai office also secured a larger network win, with Ogilvy named Agency Network of the Year for the seventh consecutive year after amassing 24 Effies across six territories. That haul included seven Golds, five Silvers and 12 Bronzes.

Independent players also made a mark. For the second year in succession, The Womb was named Independent Agency of the Year. Its collection of three Silvers and five Bronzes also secured it third place in the overall Agency of the Year rankings.

Among clients, St. Jude ChildCare Centres emerged as the most visible winner. The non-profit was named both Brand of the Year and Marketer of the Year for The Impossible Choice, a campaign that reframed the experience of childhood cancer from the patient to the caregiver. The idea highlighted the agonising decision of choosing which child could be accommodated within limited facilities, and therefore continue treatment.

The campaign resonated strongly with the jury, translating a social reality into an effectiveness case that delivered measurable impact. The recognition also pushed St. Jude ahead of larger commercial brands such as VinFast and Vaseline in the Brand of the Year rankings.

Special awards and rankings impact

The Special Awards, calculated on cumulative points across wins and finalist placements, further reinforced the night’s key storylines.

• Brand of the Year went to St. Jude ChildCare Centres, followed by VinFast VF3 and Vaseline.
• Marketer of the Year was awarded to St. Jude ChildCare Centres, with Unilever second and VinFast third.
• Independent Agency of the Year placed The Womb first, ahead of Pitchblack Partners and Fenton.
• Agency of the Year rankings were led by Ogilvy Mumbai, with Leo Burnett Mumbai in second and The Womb in third.
• Agency Network of the Year saw Ogilvy retain its lead, followed by Leo Burnett Worldwide and DDB Worldwide.

For the second year in succession, The Womb was named Independent Agency of the Year.

All winners and finalists will accumulate points towards the 2025 Effie Index, scheduled for release in 2026. The Index is widely viewed as a benchmark, ranking the most effective agencies, marketers and brands worldwide based on data from Effie competitions.

Broader industry implications

The results reaffirm the ongoing influence of Indian agencies within APAC, both in multinational networks and independent spaces. Ogilvy’s ability to maintain dominance across multiple territories reflects the scale advantages of a global network, but The Womb’s repeat performance highlights how independent outfits are carving space with distinct creative approaches.

For clients, the rise of St. Jude as Brand of the Year illustrates how non-commercial organisations can shape the effectiveness conversation when campaigns are rooted in emotional clarity and deliver tangible results. That outcome suggests that effectiveness benchmarks are not confined to scale of spend, but increasingly tied to resonance and cultural insight.

St. Jude ChildCare Centres was named both Brand of the Year and Marketer of the Year.

The first-time win for Sri Lanka signals another shift: smaller markets can now stake claims on regional platforms with the right creative and strategic execution. For multinationals, this broadening of the competitive field may force recalibration of resource allocation and market focus.

The APAC Effies are one of more than 55 award programmes globally under the Effie umbrella, with results feeding into the Effie Effectiveness Index. Since its introduction by the New York American Marketing Association in 1968, the Effies have become a touchstone for measuring impact rather than just creative craft.

As agencies and brands head into a year marked by economic uncertainty, rising media costs and greater demand for accountability, the awards underscore an industry truth: effectiveness, not visibility, remains the hardest currency.