Hasta La Creative!

Protein World is the MRA message board of the business world. The “expert brand trolls” who bench 250 in their spare time without breaking a sweat courted controversy in the U.K. with their 2014 “are you beach body ready” ads, which inspired plenty of graffiti, protests on the tube and a clever response from Carlsberg.

The ads were taken down but later ruled “not offensive” by a local watchdog org, and the Protein World dudes reveled in the media attention before bringing their campaign to New York, where subway riders may now be greeted by yet another Photoshopped, cellulite-free butt as they move through the turnstiles on the way to work.

BBH New York was less than amused.

Over the long weekend, “a team” from the agency descended upon the Union Square station and altered some of the ads in order to spread “a powerful message about female empowerment” and support the American Women’s World Cup team…which proceeded to demolish Japan in the Sunday final.

One of our teams showed these protein ads what real women are doing this wknd. #WorldCupReady http://t.co/shAcqeerQJ pic.twitter.com/EyvPy29joq

— BBH New York (@BBHNewYork) July 3, 2015

They even created a website bearing the tagline “Are You #WorldCupReady?”

The hashtag didn’t QUITE take off, but the team did earn the attention of trade pubs and New Yorkers. And–despite the many rightly troubling “double standard” pieces regarding the sad state of women’s sports that ran during the World Cup–the U.S. won the championship and all attendant adoration from the press and public.

For the record, Protein World is still a crap company run by a bunch of douchebags selling a shit product. Just ask their favorite model.

In a somewhat dramatic turn of events, New Jersey-based Star Group Communications, identified as “the largest woman-owned marketing and communications firm in the country,” officially closed all of its offices today after more than 30 years in business.

As reported by the Philadelphia Business Journal, the agency sent a memo out to its 150-plus employees last night:

“Effective close of business today, it is with deepest regret that we must advise you that due to circumstances beyond our control, Star Group Communications, Inc. will cease to operate.”

Its homepage now includes a longer version of that statement:

The nature of this situation is not clear. Neither are the “new relationships” that Star Group promises its “top draft picks.” Star Group’s Glassdoor reviews were no worse than those of many other agencies, with now-former employees calling the operation “a mixed bag of skittles” and a “30 year old startup.”

One possible hint regarding the cause of the closure may lie in the agency’s client list, which included “Comcast, Teva, Wharton University of Pennsylvania, Fox Rothschild and Tropicana Entertainment.”

The failed Comcast/Time Warner Cable merger led to a series of layoffs at GS&P in San Francisco and New York, though it’s unclear whether the Star account was large enough to facilitate the closing of the entire operation. (The agency had offices in New Jersey, Philadelphia and Las Vegas.)

Interestingly, the pending shutdown did not prevent Star Group employees from attending and live tweeting yesterday’s Social Media Day events in Philadelphia.

They must not have been aware of what was about to happen.

Oh look, the rumors we’ve all heard FOR MONTHS are true: Publicis Kaplan Thaler is no more.

September 2014 feels like forever ago, but back then our sources made several claims about PKT: that all three of Publicis’ New York offices would be consolidated into the 1675 Broadway location; that there would be “departures” at the executive level; that the resulting shop would revert to the Publicis New York moniker. President/CCO Rob Feakins got fired in November, and all the other claims turned out to be true as well.

This story has essentially been common knowledge in the New York agency world for well over six months, and now it’s official: Goodbye PKT. Meet the new Publicis New York.

We’re not sure why Publicis waited so long to make this announcement or why they offered us no comment on our completely accurate tips for nine months; the PKT URL and email addresses disappeared back in May. But the new name is the last step in a “rebranding” of sorts that comes after the agency unveiled its new Pinterest-like global logo and named Andy Bird of Publicis London as its new chief creative officer.

The answer to the inevitable question regarding Linda Kaplan Thaler: she will “continue in her role as chairman of the New York office,” and Susan Gianinno will also continue in her role as North American chairman of the larger Publicis organization.

Linda Kaplan Thaler’s statement from the release:

“Kaplan Thaler is truly part of the Publicis DNA, and we are proud of the evolution that this name-change represents. I could not imagine a better salute to what we have all created together here in New York than to have our office carry forward the flagship banner under the global brand name and identity.”

It would seem, then, that the name change is just that for now. No word on the current status of the Publicis-wide pay freeze, which was 100 percent true no matter what the agency’s PR department in Paris wants to tell us.

180LA is looking to hire a “badass creative director,” so the agency created “The Most Direct Recruitment Ad Ever,” and found a way to ensure top candidates would see it. They entered the ad into four Cannes competitions (the Film Lions, Direct Lions, Radio Lions and Press Lions) under the assumption that “if you’re on the Cannes Jury, you’re definitely one of the best creative directors in the world.”

The ad even calls out certain creative directors by name, including Luca Lorenzini and Eva Santos. 180 LA promises an 120 percent increase in the days of sunshine and “astonishing results.” For the latter, the ad claims 180LA is “one of the sexiest agencies on the planet” and that they work with “amazing clients who are hungry to do the best work of their lives.” And that beach view shown throughout the ad? That’s “the view from your new office.”

Obviously, 180LA isn’t hoping to bring home a Cannes Lion with the ad, but rather has found an attention-grabbing way to reach top creative directors who may be interested in the position. But will they find the ad clever, or a spammy gimmick? And was it worth the thousands the agency paid in entry fees?