In the June-August 2026 issue of NZ Marketing magazine, we asked agency founders to tell us the story behind why they started their agency, their favourite thing, what they’ve learned and their best advice.
Thompson Spencer Group
- Founders: Wendy Thompson, Melanie Spencer, Matt Rowe and Tim Pointer
- Year founded: 2025
Tell us the story behind founding your agency.
Wendy Thompson was an OG in social media, founding Socialites in 2016 and helping some of New Zealand’s biggest brands – from Telecom’s rebrand to Spark, to Mitre 10 and Auckland Airport – step confidently into the social era.
In 2019, Melanie Spencer bought into Socialites, and together they set out to build an agency for the future. Through strategic acquisitions, they brought in specialist expertise across the areas they knew would set the business apart, expanding beyond social while keeping it firmly at the heart. As Socialites evolved into Thompson Spencer, it quickly became an integrated creative and media agency.
The missing piece was deep performance, data and analytics capability, which led to the merger with Reason in 2025. Enter Matt Rowe and Tim Pointer, who started Reason the same year Socialites was founded. Today, Thompson Spencer Group brings together the strengths and smarts of an agency for the future.
Favourite thing about running your own agency?
The media landscape is changing at incredible speed. Almost every week, we are making changes – some small, some significant – to stay ahead of the curve and keep building an agency that is fit for the future. As a founder-led, independent agency, we have the freedom and agility to move quickly.
We can respond to change in real time, make decisions with pace and keep evolving our model around what clients, brands and the market actually need.
Our vision is to create an agency the world needs. That means constantly challenging ourselves, staying curious and being brave enough to adapt when the industry shifts. It also means drawing on the strengths of our founders and leadership team, leaning into what matters most to the business and building with intention.
We are not just reacting to change, we are actively shaping what comes next.
The most important thing you’ve learned?
Expect the unexpected and trust your gut.
In a world where there is so much information at our fingertips, it is easy to fall into analysis paralysis. Sometimes, the real skill is knowing when to pause, back yourself and trust that the pieces will come together.
Business today operates in a world packed with change, uncertainty and constant disruption. Having your own business means learning how to weather that, while setting yourself up for success no matter what storm may be around the corner.
The key is mindset. It’s about turning lemons into lemonade, finding opportunity in the chaos and moving with confidence when others are frozen in headlights.
Success comes from staying calm, staying sharp and being brave enough to act when the path is not perfectly clear. That is often where the biggest opportunities are found.
Recent work from Thompson Spencer Group.
What’s the best piece of advice you’ve received or given out?
The best piece of advice I’ve been given is to surround yourself with people whose strengths are your weaknesses, and vice versa.
Wendy and I [Melanie] have very different strengths, and we know exactly when to lean on each other. Bringing Matt and Tim into the business has expanded that even further, adding new perspectives, capabilities and energy.
With four founders comes four distinct skillsets, and that is incredibly powerful. It should always be 1+1=3, where the collective is stronger than the individuals. That is where real momentum is created: through trust, complementary strengths and shared ambition.
Anything else we should know?
We love having fun in this crazy world. In fact, this is the most important thing to us.
This story comes from NZ Marketing magazine issue 87, June-August 2026. Why not subscribe? Get four issues a year for just $50 (including delivery) if you autorenew.
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