About

Chair, AMI · FAMI (Life) · CPM · Managing Director, Wink

Loyalty strategy grounded in commercial reality.

Kristie Atkins is a multi-award-winning commercial growth leader, Chair of the Australian Marketing Institute, and Managing Director of Wink — Australasia's most celebrated loyalty and engagement agency. Based in Sydney, she helps brands win and keep customers through loyalty, retention and acquisition programs that drive measurable results.

Work with Kristie

From Newcastle radio to leading Australasia's loyalty industry

Kristie Atkins began her career as a radio journalist, announcer and promotions manager in Newcastle — an early foundation in storytelling, audience engagement and the art of making brands matter to real people. From there she built a career across some of Australia's most dynamic sectors. She served as Divisional Managing Director at Village Roadshow, Chief Operating Officer at Waivpay, Chief Commercial Officer at Ovato, and Director of Sales at Event Hospitality and Entertainment. Each role sharpened her commercial edge: understanding how businesses grow, where customers are won and lost, and how to design for both. In 2020, Kristie co-founded Wink — a customer acquisition and retention marketing business headquartered in Sydney. Wink has since been named APAC's Loyalty and Engagement Agency Team of the Year, taking Australia's only honours at the 12th annual APAC Loyalty and Engagement Awards in Singapore. The agency works across loyalty, promotions, cashback, rewards and gift card programs, and marketing consulting. Alongside her commercial leadership, Kristie is one of Australia's foremost marketing professionals. She was appointed Chair of the Australian Marketing Institute in October 2023, having joined the AMI Board as a Non-Executive Director in August of that year. She is an AMI Life Member and Fellow, and holds the designation of Australasia's Certified Practising Marketer of the Year — the highest individual recognition the AMI bestows. She is also a Fellow and Chartered Marketer of the Chartered Institute of Marketing (UK). Kristie's board commitments extend beyond marketing. She is Deputy Chair of the Hunter Medical Research Institute board (appointed January 2026), has chaired the HMRI Foundation since December 2022, and established the HMRI Sydney Foundation in 2015. She is also an Independent Director on the board of Restaurant and Catering Industry Association Australia, an advisory board member for international fashion company Azura Runway, and an advisory board member for Vennu, a digital marketplace for unique and unused spaces. She is a member of the Australian Institute of Company Directors and Women on Boards, and serves as a judge for the Australian Loyalty Association, B&T Women in Media, and the Dragons of Asia awards.