Hasta La Creative!

Mike Myers and his brother, Peter Myers, who has worked at Sears for 32 years, star in a new ad for Sears Canada.

In the spot, Mike talks about Sears Canada’s recent woes, asking if the retailer is going away. Peter reassures him that they aren’t going anywhere and asks if he knows anything about the retail business, to which Mike replies, “Not a lot. Just that Sears Canada has to demographically and psychographically alter the trajectory of its business model. But that would just be a wild guess.” Despite the two brothers’ natural chemistry, that’s as close to a laugh as the 60-second spot, which will only air in Canada, gets. Still, it’s not completely without its charm, as the brand being upfront about its recent struggles is refreshing. The spot ends with Peter asking if Mike is going to deliver the tagline, and Mike rehashing a long-retired one before offering up one of his own. (more…)

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Pizza Hut has appointed Ogilvy & Mather London as its creative agency in the UK without a pitch, The Drum reports. The account is estimated at £10m.

“I am excited about working with Ogilvy to spearhead our renewed marketing effort in UK,” Sandeep Kataria, general manager at Pizza Hut UK & Ireland said about the appointment. “I am excited about working with Ogilvy to spearhead our renewed marketing effort in UK. Already a partner of Pizza Hut and Yum! brands across numerous markets worldwide, we naturally want to tap into the creative excellence and strategic rigour synonymous with the Ogilvy network.”

The news follows the appointment of Deutsch LA as lead creative agency in the US in July, and a recent logo and menu revamp. Ogilvy & Mather London will be tasked with creating a series of integrated campaign articulating “Pizza Hut’s unique proposition and relevancy to consumers today,” according to The Drum.

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AMV BBDO created a holiday ad for U.K. supermarket chain Sainsbury’s, telling the story of the historic 1914 Christmas Truce between Britain and Germany during World War I.

To make sure the details were correct for the 3:20 ad, entitled “Christmas is for Sharing,” AMV BBDO and Royal British Legion worked closely with historians, basing the ad on original reports and letters describing the event. The ad opens on Christmas Eve 1914, with both sides hunkered down in their bunkers. Soon, both the Germans and British are singing “Silent Night” and one brave soldier emerges, arms waving in peace, and walks towards the war zone. Both sides meet halfway between their bunkers, engaging in friendly conversation and even a game of footie. The spot is elaborately produced and well-shot, directed by Ringan Ledwidge, looking more like a Hollywood war film than an advertisement. Its long running time is no mere gimmick either, as the spot utilizes the time to build emotion and prepare the viewer for the ultimate payoff.

Sainsbury’s unveiled the ad during Tuesday night’s airing of Coronation Street, and a chocolate bar that features heavily into the story is available for sale in their stores, with proceed going to the Royal British Legion.

“Christmas is a special time of year when people come together to share simple moments and kindnesses,” Mark Given, head of brand communications at Sainsbury’s, told Adweek. “This year, we wanted to reflect that theme of sharing in our Christmas campaign through the lens of one of the most extraordinary moments of sharing in modern history, when on Christmas Day 1914, British and German soldiers laid down their arms, and came together on neutral territory to share stories, mementos and even a game of football.”

Stick around after the jump for a behind-the-scenes look at the making of the ad and a look at the historical events that inspired it. (more…)

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In a story that somehow slipped through the cracks here yesterday, Nestle USA shrunk its digital agency roster to eight shops, following a lengthy review which the company launched in the spring to “streamline the agency roster and increase the impact of the company’s digital efforts,” AdAge reported.

The review covered Nestle USA brands, excluding Purina, Gerber and Nestle Waters, which are part of a separate Nestle division. Agencies left standing are 360i, Deep Focus, Huge, Grey, Resource/Ammirati, Threshold Interactive, SmithBrothers and Swift. (more…)

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Diamond Foods has selected San Francisco-based integrated, independent agency Duncan/Channon as agency of record for its Pop Secret and Diamond of California nuts brands, following a competitive review.

The agency will lead branding, advertising strategy, creative and media efforts for the brands. Duncan/Channon will also be tasked with creating a new brand platform and national campaigns “designed to support Diamond Foods’ focus on building and energizing its premium snack food and culinary nut brands.” These campaigns will feature both traditional and non-traditional components, such as social media, and will be informed by the agency’s brand strategy department. Initial campaigns focusing on Pop Secret and Diamond of California are expected early next year.

“We were very impressed by the ideas and creative presented by Duncan/Channon, but it was the team itself that clinched this decision,” said Burke Raine, vice president of marketing, snacks, at Diamond Foods. “There’s something special going on at this agency and we can’t wait to put our teams together to build on the great momentum across the Diamond brands.

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In adam&eveDDB’s Christmas spot for Mulberry, a grandmother “wins Christmas’ with a Mulberry bag, trumping some pretty stiff competition in the process.

The ad follows a young woman as she opens a series of presents, beginning with a pointillist portrait of her painted by her sister. Each gift gets more over the top and ridiculous, verging into the absurd, until the girl’s reaction to the Mulberry bag from her grandmother reveals it to be the best gift of all. It’s an interesting approach, forgoing the typical sentimentality of holiday advertising for a tongue-in-cheek celebration of materialism. adam&eveDDB pulls it off well, slowly ramping up the absurdity and not taking itself too seriously while still effectively promoting the brand. That the agency was able to produce both the heartwarming “Monty The Penguin” ad for John Lewis and this, pretty much its polar opposite, shows impressive range. (more…)

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180 Amsterdam has launched a new campaign for Sony’s PS4 holiday push entitled “Welcome to the Future of Play.”

In what has long been the standard for gaming advertising, players are thrust into the action of a game. “I don’t want to die…again,” says one of the players, as he and a friend hide during a fierce battle. The friend decides they have three options: check YouTube and hope someone shared how to get past the stage via the PS4?s “Share” button; ask their friend Dave how to survive the Viking attack; or invite Nick to join them in the game, even though he doesn’t own the game. The last option illustrates one of the PS4?s big selling points, that you can join a friend’s game remotely, even if you haven’t purchased the title. The way the ad arrives at this point, however, may seem a little forced to some viewers.

The campaign is launching simultaneously in Europe, Australia, New Zealand, India, South Africa and Middle East, as the holiday season approaches. In addition to the broadcast spot, the campaign also includes print and OOH elements, each focusing on one of the key new features for the PS4 promoted in the spot. (more…)

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MUH-TAY-ZIK | HOF-FER has launched a campaign for Zoosk entitled “First Comes Like.”

Instead of hard-selling the percentage of matches who end up married or implying that Zoosk can be used as a hookup site, the agency takes a middle ground, showing a couple’s misadventures on their first date and beyond. It’s an interesting approach that positions the brand as an alternative to both dating sites that push marriage (such as Match) and more hookup-centric sites like Tinder. Instead, Zoosk appeals to young people looking for a relationship, but not ready to think of marriage.

The way the spot portrays the excitement and awkwardness of a budding relationship is charming and feels more honest than the typical portrayals of couples in the category. There’s also a 60-second online version (featured after the jump), offering a more complete glimpse of the relationship.  (more…)

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Following a string of viral digital ads, Dollar Shave Club is making the leap to broadcast television.

The move follows the company’s recent success, as, according to founder and CEO Michael Dubin, the brand “finished October with 1.1 million active subscribers, $7.2 million in monthly sales and what the company estimates as a 10% volume share of U.S. cartridges.” Dollar Shave Club also recently raised $50 million in venture capital funding.

“It’s no secret that advertising on television is a great tool in building your brand,” Dubin told AdAge. “Some of the messages we wanted to communicate felt really right for television.”

Dubin declined to specify if the budget for the broadcast campaign came from revenue or the recent round of venture capital funding. A former improv comic, Dubin co-wrote the ad, entitled “Security” with Alec Brownstein, Dollar Shave Club’s creative director. Radical Media’s Steve Miller, who has worked on the “Most Interesting Man in the World” campaign, directed the spot. “Security” pokes fun at the extreme lengths many stores go through to keep their razors from being stolen, often placing them under lock and key. “It’s almost like they don’t want you to buy their razors,” the ad jokes. A second spot, “Free Gift” takes a similar approach, employing mocking humor. (more…)

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Dick’s Sporting Goods has launched its holiday campaign with an ad meant to tug at viewer’s heartstrings via a basketball hoop, presumably from Anomaly.

Said piece of sporting equipment is given as a gift from a father to his daughter at the beginning of the spot. We then see the girl grow up via a montage of moments with the basketball hoop in the background, until, finally the family packs her up for college and the father is left to shoot hoops alone. The ad does a great job of building emotion and seamlessly leading into the “Give a gift that matters” tagline. At any other time of year, this kind of approach would run the risk of being deemed to sentimental, but that sentimentality fits pretty perfect with the holiday season.

The ad will run on 19 networks beginning this Sunday and running for several weeks. It kicks off Dick’s “Gifts That Matter” campaign, which will also be supported by social media and digital elements.

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