Hasta La Creative!

Anheuser-Busch InBev appointed Deutsch as lead creative agency for its family of Busch brands, which includes Busch, Busch Light and Busch Ice.

“Anheuser-Busch is the undisputed leader in the value beer segment, with Busch and Busch Light representing two of the Top 10 best-selling beers in the United States. As part of our ambition to continue to grow share and revitalize these important brands, we are pleased to add Deutsch to our roster as the lead creative agency for the Busch family of beers,” Anheuser-Busch senior director of value brands Chelsea Phillips said in a statement.

She went on to cite Deutsch’s “track record of inventive, award-winning CPG and beverage campaigns,” adding, “They’ve hit the ground running, bringing great energy and ideas to the table, and we look forward to a strong and productive partnership.”

The appointment comes without a review, as AB InBev reached out to Deutsch, which an AB InBev representative told Adweek is “an agency our marketing team has been watching.”

Previously, AB InBev worked with St. Louis agency Group360 on its Busch brands. Group360 will continue to work on some aspects of the account, even with Deutsch taking over lead creative duties. The client has also worked with 72andSunny, which crafted the brand’s “Busch Heroes” broadcast campaign in early 2014 but doesn’t appear to have worked with the client since then.

Deutsch deferred to the client when asked to comment. The IPG agency’s New York office will lead this account.

The appointment follows Uber picking Deutsch as its first U.S. agency partner earlier this month following a review. Back in May, the agency also won creative AOR duties for Pandora shortly after losing the Pizza Hut account to Droga5 and going through a subsequent round of layoffs in its L.A. office.

AB In Bev also transferred creative duties on another of its major brands, Bud Light, from BBDO to W+K last summer.

Just over a year after naming New York City-based Barker as its new agency of record for a brand relaunch, SlimFast has retained the indie agency’s services after a full creative review.

Back in late 2014, Barker beat out Pereira & O’Dell, DiMassimo Goldstein and Omelet to win the business; this time, it pitched against two MDC Partners agencies (Doner and CP+B) as well as Omnicom’s The Marketing Arm and VaynerMedia.

This means that Barker, which was tasked with managing last year’s $50 million refresh, will continue to work on branding, marketing strategy, and creative concerning TV, print and digital for “master brand and innovation extensions.” It will partner with new media/direct response unit agency Chief Media, which won a separate review.

To date, Barker’s primary work for SlimFast has been the “It’s Your Thing” campaign, which launched in mid-2015.

The press release tells us that the campaign “dramatically reversed 7 years of declining sales for the venerable brand” and also claims that the TV post above “outperformed CPG norms in 13 categories in testing.”

Agency founder John Barker, who previously spent several years with the Grey Group, said: “Historically, fewer than 10% of incumbent agencies retain accounts. We beat very long odds against some of the best agencies in the business because we understand this consumer and know how to connect and generate action. We appreciate SlimFast’s confidence in our ongoing partnership.”

“Each of the finalist agencies presented compelling work, but BARKER came through again with the strategy and creative we felt would move us to the next level more quickly,” added SlimFast CEO Chris Tisi.

Unilever sold the SlimFast brand to Kainos Capital in 2014 for an undisclosed sum while retaining a minority stake in the business.

The Barker organization, which describes itself as “agents of change,” also lists PepsiCo, Estee Lauder, P&G, PDI Healthcare, NBC Universal and Conjure Cognac among its clients.

Its newest work for SlimFast will debut this fall.

Blue Bell Creameries appointed Houston-based agency Richards/Carlberg (which is part of The Richards Group network) as its agency of record following a creative review. In the role, Richards/Carlberg will be tasked with strategy and creative duties across broadcast, social media, radio, print and OOH.

“Richards/Carlberg is the right company to preserve and foster the image and mystique that make Blue Bell unique,” Blue Bell vice president of sales and marketing Ricky Dickson said in a statement. “They are the type of agency partner to help us produce creative that will continue to engage our remarkably loyal customers.”

“We’ve been fortunate to work with so many talented people over our 109-year history, and we are especially excited to be partnering with the team at Richards/Carlberg,” added Blue Bell advertising and public relations manager Joe Robertson.

The appointment follows a rough period for the Brenham, Texas-based creamery. Blue Bell Creameries was recently under criminal investigation by the U.S. Department of Justice for its link to a listeria outbreak dating back to 2010. 

Blue Bell principal and Brenham native Gayl Carlberg will lead the account, which she worked on early in her career when Blue Bell’s advertising was handled by Houston-based Metzdorf Advertising Agency.

“I won’t exaggerate—this is nothing short of a career-long goal for me,” Carlberg said. “I loved my time working on Blue Bell, and our team is ready to sink our teeth into this account to help this brand continue its phenomenal success for another century.”

AdAge reports that Anheuser-Busch InBev is in talks with agencies about creative for its faux-craft Shock Top brand. The brand clarifies that it is not launching a creative review, as it has not had an agency of record in recent years, and is looking to continue to work outside the AOR model.

According to Kantar Media, A-B InBev spent around $21.6 million in measured media on the brand in the first six months of 2016, a sharp increase from the $2.5 million it spent during all of last year.

“What we’re doing right now is simply having a few conversations with leading creative agencies,” Schock Top vice president Jake Kirsch told AdAge in a statement today. “This isn’t a review, as we haven’t had a creative AOR for some time. As we plan for 2017, and beyond, we’re having these conversations as part of our normal course of business. Shock Top is always open to new ideas and discussions with the best and brightest creative minds in the industry.”

Most recently, Anomaly Toronto had handled creative for the brand. Notably, the agency created the brand’s first Super Bowl spot, starring T.J. Miller and Martin Montana, as part of its “Live Life Unfiltered” campaign. Shock Top has previously worked with 72andSunny and independent St. Louis agency Group 360.

Neither Anomaly or Anheuser-Busch InBev have responded to our requests for comment on this development.

Ascent Protein appointed TDA_Boulder as its agency of record and the agency launched its debut campaign promoting Ascent Native Fuel Whey Protein with “The Official Sponsor of Hard Work.”

“After intense review, TDA_Boulder stood out as the agency that most understood the mindset of our target customer – those who are dedicated at a high level to fitness. We liked that TDA_Boulder is nimble, exceptionally creative and acts like a true partner,” explained Ascent Protein general manager Paul Vraciu. “We knew that by choosing them, we were gaining an extension of our team who would be deeply invested in our mission and goals in bringing a cleaner protein to the market.”

“Ascent is changing the expectations in a confusing and crowded market, we’re simply proud to be working with them,” added TDA_Boulder partner and executive creative director Jonathan Schoenberg. “Our work is 360 – everything from creating their tagline, ‘The Official Sponsor of Hard Work,’ to event activation, print, out of home, video and social engagement. Health and fitness is a part of our ethos, we even work out with the Ascent team monthly to continue digging deeper in the athlete’s psyche.”

The spot “Garage,”  which runs in 30 and 46-second versions,  is about what you’d expect from a spot selling a whey protein product. A muscular bro works out in his garage while imagining a chorus of naysayers telling him he can’t do it. He gets up the will for one last pushup before the spot concludes with a shot of Ascent Native Fuel Whey Protein.

To promote the launch of Ascent Native Fuel Whey Protein, TDA_Boulder also launched a “Surprise Sponsorship” program, which rewards everyday athletes with sponsorship deals. It also named 2015 Spartan Race World Champion Robert Killian as the brand’s first sponsored athlete. 

Here are a couple of the print spots.

Credits

Agency: TDA_Boulder
Client: Ascent Protein

Thomas Dooley, ECD, Founder
Jonathan Schoenberg, ECD, Partner
Constance DeCherney, Director of Strategy
Jeremy Seibold, Creative Director
Barrett Brynestad, Associate Creative Director
Sam Johnson, Media Director
Heather Lee, Media Supervisor
Kate Osborne, Sr. Project Manager/Producer
Lindsey Ritter, Integrated Producer
Michelle Hicks, Production Designer
Christi Tucay Clark, Director of Client Services
Lauren Corna, Senior Account Executive
Roger Ferguson, Assistant Account Executive

Print
Trevor Pearson Photography, LA (Product Photographer)
Dana Neibert Photgraphy, Coronado, CA (Campaign Photographer)
Sunny 16 Productions, LA (On set photography producer)
Andresen Digital, LA (Retouching & Prepress)

Surprise Sponsorship Video
Production: Buck Ross
Director: Ryan Ross
DP: Jeffery Garland
Post Production: Buck Ross
Editor: Lam Nguyen
Sound Mix: Coupe Studios
VO: Eric Singer

Sirens Video
Production Company: The Directors Bureau
Director: Ryan Hope
Exec Producer: Lisa Margulis
Exec Producer: Elizabeth Minzes
Producer: Benjamin Gilovitz
DP: Matt Lloyd
Production Designer: JC Molina
Post Production: Cosmo Street
Editor: Katz
Post Producer: Chelsea Spensley
Online: Shinya
Composer: Ari Balouzian
Graphics company: Brickyard
Animator: Anton Thallner
Finishing Company: Apache
Colorist: Shane Reed
Mix Studio: Lime
Sound Engineer: Zac Fischer

IHOP appointed Campbell Ewald L.A. as its creative agency, following a creative review restricted to IPG agencies, AdAge reports.

Campbell Ewald replaces Dailey L.A., which has been the chain’s creative agency since taking over for McCann L.A. in 2012. IHOP will continue to work with fellow IPG agencies MRM/McCann on digital and social campaign elements and BPN on media planning and strategy. According to Kantar Media, IHOP parent company DineEquity spent almost $242.2 million on U.S. measured media in 2015. 

“Those years with Dailey took our work very far forward. It was time to build on that success and pause and think about what’s the best way to take it onto the next level,” IHOP Restaurants senior vice president, marketing Kirk Thompson told AdAge in an interview. “We needed to do everything we were doing well at warp speed.”

Campbell Ewald’s first work for the brand is expected in September, and is rumored to include a new tagline. The brand introduced a new logo in June of 2015.

“Many of us on the Campbell Ewald team have cherished memories of eating at IHOP with our families and friends and we’re thrilled to bring this overwhelming love that guests and fans have for the iconic brand to life through the creative,” said Campbell Ewald CEO Kevin Wertz, in a statement.

What is Epsilon? A consultancy? A branding agency? A data-driven marketing company?

We honestly don’t know. Maybe it’s all of the above. But the company has now won the Del Monte account after a review, and it’s (probably) coming for your business too.

The food conglomerate, which is the very sort of party one associates with the word “corporation,” consolidated its traditional, digital, social and shopper marketing accounts with Epsilon after a review. It had previously worked with MRY and TBWAJuniper Park, among other agencies.

Moving forward, Epsilon (whose chief creative officer now calls it an agency) will develop an “overarching multi-channel creative campaign and communications plan” to promote the College Inn, Del Monte plastic Fruit Cups and Del Monte vegetable product lines.

This is not the company’s first agency of record relationship as it has worked on TV and digital video spots for client Nature’s Way. But it’s a sign that Epsilon will probably be involved in more creative reviews moving forward. Here’s its own description of its services:

The client’s head of marketing cited “Our deep understanding of consumer and shopper needs, married with Epsilon’s unique ability to oversee strategy, creative, insights and execution” in explaining the decision.

From Epsilon CCO and Leo Burnett veteran John Immesoete:

“This is a great win for our agency at Epsilon. Data shows us things that other agencies can’t see—consumers, buying patterns, unique insights—and we’re able to bring clients like Del Monte big creative ideas to capitalize on our unique perspective.

We’re different than any other agency out there, which is why we’re starting to get a lot of notice. We look forward to working with this great, growing Del Monte business, and creating some great work in the process.”

Kantar Media tells us Del Monte spent just under $6 million in the U.S. in the first quarter of 2016. Score one for data.

BBQ chain Famous Dave’s of America appointed Minneapolis-based agency Colle+McVoy as its agency of record, tasked with  strategy, creative, design, media planning and buying, and digital duties in service of revitalizing the brand.

The appointment reunites the agency with Famous Dave’s CMO Alfredo Martel, whom it previously worked with when Martel served as CMO for Caribou Coffee. (That account went to Vitro in March after 7 years with C+M.)

“This is the perfect time for us to partner with Colle+McVoy,” Martel said in a statement. “Together, we have a passion for revitalizing beloved brands with wonderful stories and we are well poised to leverage the ‘sauce-some’ legacy of the Famous Dave’s brand experience.”

“We are excited to join forces with Famous Dave’s to take the brand to a whole new level,” added Colle+McVoy CEO Christine Fruechte. “We look forward to reconnecting Guests with the All American Bar-B-Que Party, while generating strong ROI for Famous Dave’s and its franchisee partners.”

The appointment comes on the heels of a pair of recent hirings for Colle+McVoy. Executive creative director Laura Fegley joined the agency early in the month and Maria Pazos joined as senior strategist last week. Late last month the agency released its “Olympic Swimmers When They Were Just Beginners” spot for USA Swimming. 

Yesterday Cadillac announced that it will “Dare Greatly” in the Great White North after picking Toronto’s Red Lion as its Canadian agency of record.

This decision comes more than a year and a half after Publicis swiped the global Cadillac account from IPG, which created the unit Rouge to serve the client.

“This represents a huge win for Red Lion and an ideal client partnership,” said agency president and CCO Matthew Litzinger in a statement. (Litzinger left Cossette for Red Lion two years ago.) “For generations, Cadillac has been the ‘Standard of the World’ because it dared to challenge the status quo with passionate originality.  It is the result of courageous thinking motivated by the desire to bring to life something truly exceptional.  The evolution at Cadillac continues and being able to help shape that transformation is not only exciting, it’s an honour.”

Canada is the luxury carmaker’s third-largest market. But according to Marketing Canada, Cadillac has not had a Canadian agency of record, choosing instead to work with various area shops on a per-project basis.

The press release describes the decision as “the next phase in the Cadillac mission to expand and elevate the brand and product portfolio.” Cadillac Canada general manager Mahmoud Samara said, “This partnership is a step for Cadillac Canada to join forces with a lead agency that shares our values. A daring mindset and the ability to challenge convention are some of the key traits we look for.”

Again according to Marketing Canada, Cadillac did not issue an RFP but instead chose a group of area agencies with which to discuss creative direction before picking Red Lion.

The client looks to boost its overall ad spend in Canada, with Red Lion’s first work debuting this fall.

Reliable sources tell us this week that the New York offices of TBWAChiatDay recently won a creative review for work related to the Pepsi brand.

PepsiCo did not announce this review, but the company has made some recent changes to its agency lineup. Last September, former AOR BBDO rekindled its relationship with the main Pepsi brand by way of a spot starring unlikely spokesperson and Seahawks running back Marshawn Lynch. This was BBDO’s first work for the parent brand in 7 years since TBWA won lead creative duties in a 2008 review, and it arrived before the agency won Tropicana.

Last month, Pepsi also named VML as the new AOR for its Brisk Tea line, which had previously been with The Barbarian Group. (As we understand it, the latter agency will continue to play some role on the Brisk account for the immediate future.) In May, the soft drink giant announced the opening of its own “state of the art content studio” in Manhattan.

A TBWA spokesperson declined to comment for this post, and PepsiCo’s PR department has not responded to multiple email queries and phone calls this week.

For that reason, the scope of the TBWA win and the nature of the work it will eventually produce is not clear at this time. But we did learn of the win from a party with direct knowledge of the matter. We also hear that Erik Vervroegen, the former Publicis Groupe international CCO who became global head of art for the TBWA network last month, has begun hiring creatives to work on the Pepsi business. Vervroegen and former TBWA South Africa colleague/current global creative president Chris Garbutt will supposedly collaborate on the account and related staffing efforts in the New York office.

Pepsi’s recent advertising efforts for its main brand have been nostalgic: The company brought Crystal Pepsi back from the dead with Barbarian Group’s help last year. It also revisited the classic 1992 BBDO Cindy Crawford ad in a recent Millennial reboot and ran some emoji-focused spots earlier this year with the help of its various global agency partners.