Tūhura Otago Museum‘s small marketing team is among top businesses in the southern region. The tiny team’s innovative methods are putting Ōtepoti Dunedin on the global map.
Tūhura Otago Museum’s marketing team has been named Marketing Team of the Year at the Business South Awards 2025.
The recognition celebrates a small, youthful and creative team that’s putting Dunedin, Otago and the museum on the global map.
The team is led by marketing and communications manager Charlie Buchan. Digital marketing co-ordinator Max Levitt-Campbell drives the museum’s digital storytelling and national attention. Meanwhile, content creator editor Alice Waterman crafts exhibition text, gallery interpretation, reports and public-facing copy.
Their work has had national and international impact, establishing them as one of Aotearoa’s most dynamic museum marketing teams.
Committed to the community
Despite operating with tight budgets, the team – all aged under 34 – have big ideas. They’ve reshaped Dunedin’s city signs into Lego-inspired artworks, created nationally recognised campaigns and consistently generated international media interest. Their campaigns have propelled the region onto CNN, the BBC and other global networks.
Lego-inspired artworks and campaign from Tūhura Museum.
They often spotlighting the area’s wildlife, people and culture that surprise audiences who don’t expect such impact from a small team at the bottom of the world.
Buchan says the award acknowledges the team’s passion, creativity and commitment to their community.
“I’m incredibly proud of this team. This isn’t a job we switch off from. We live and breathe it because we genuinely care about Dunedin, Otago and the amazing work happening at Tūhura. Just like our local hoiho, they might be small and not many of them, but they can be loud, recognisable and known.”
A team to watch
Their work drives the museum’s remarkable momentum. Tūhura now welcomes more than 400,000 visitors a year, making it the most visited cultural community institution in the South Island.
In the past year, the museum has hosted 17 free exhibitions, 406 events, while also delivering outreach education to more than 25,000 young people. The marketing team amplifies this visibility and engagement, keeping the museum lively, relevant and connected to the region.
Sarah Maguire, CEO of Museums Aotearoa, has called Tūhura’s marketing team “a team to watch”, praising their creativity, courage and commitment to sharing stories that make a difference for the communities they serve.
Buchan says their work goes far beyond traditional marketing.
“We work closely with the events team to develop new ideas, with our designers to shape exhibitions and across the museum to keep things fresh. There’s a misconception that museums are becoming less relevant, but our results tell a different story. Smart marketing, smart events and strong exhibitions keep us thriving.”
Business Awards judge Janine Tindall-Morice, general manager South Island regions at NZME, says the team’s inventive approach made them stand out.
“We were impressed with how cleverly Tūhura’s marketing team uses limited resources. Their campaigns are high-impact, innovative and deeply engaging. They showed that you don’t need huge budgets to achieve exceptional results.”
