Jägermeister Picks Opperman Weiss as Its Global Creative Agency

In news that we missed last week, Jägermeister appointed Opperman Weiss as its lead global creative agency, tasked with launching a heritage campaign for the brand next year. Deutsch New York has handled the brand’s U.S. creative since being awarded those duties following a 2014 internal review.

Opperman Weiss was selected “based on prior relationships it had with the spirits brand,” co-founder Jeff Weiss told AdAge

Jeff Popkin, CEO of Sidney Frank, the company that imports Jägermeister in the U.S., said Opperman Weiss was able to “connect with and immediately look into the brand and articulate the story that has yet to be told.” 

That language hints at what Jägermeister and Opperman Weiss have in store for next year’s campaign. While the brand, which Popkin said was “built in North America” on Jager bombs, will not completely shy away from its party image, the campaign, he said, aims to “reintroduce Jägermeister to current consumers and introduce it to a new generation of consumers who will be surprised by the level of detail and meticulous planning that goes into the brand.”

The work will mark Jägermeister’s first national brand campaign in five years. While more recent spending information doesn’t seem to be available, the brand spent around $5.6 million on U.S. measured media in the first nine months of 2013, according to AdAge, and Popkin told the publication the current budget is “easily double that.” The effort will include broadcast, digital, mobile, OOH, experiential and influencer marketing initiatives and is expected in the first quarter of 2017.

Opperman Weiss, Team USA Head to the Olympics in Chobani Campaign

Opperman Weiss launched a “No Bad Stuff” Olympics campaign featuring a slew of Team USA athletes,including soccer star Alex Morganboxer Marlen Esparza, wrestler Jordan Burroughs, paratriathlete Melissa Stockwell and decathlete Ashton Eaton

All of the aforementioned athletes appear in the 60-second anthem ad at the heart of the campaign, and each appears in shorter ads detailing their “#NoBadStuff” philsophy and fuel. The anthem ad in question starts with the line, delivered via voiceover coupled with footage of Stockwell swimming, “To be great, you must be full of the strength to overcome adversity.” Each athlete gets a moment in the spotlight as the ad goes on to explain what it takes to be great and what you have to stay away from. The phrase, of course, is meant to apply to the kind of negativity athletes must shy away from, as well as the yogurt being free of unhealthy additives.

The idea is explored further in the short spots, such as one featuring Morgan give the advice to not listen to your detractors with a philosophy that boils down to “Don’t listen to them, listen to you.”

The approach is a well-worn one. While the “No Bad Stuff” message has a double meaning which applies well to the brand, the anthem ad feels more than a little familiar, which detracts significantly from its effectiveness. With a growing pack of similarly-minded Olympics ads, it just doesn’t do much to stand out.

“In order for these athletes to really reach their ultimate place of greatness it’s not only that they can’t let shitty food get into their body—they can’t eat sugars and preservatives and chemicals and all that stuff—but they also can’t allow negativity into their being and spirit, whether that’s racism or hatred or jealousy or pride, all of those things that are blocks to greatness to athleticism,” Opperman Weiss co-founder Jeff Weiss told Adweek.

Credits:
Brand: Chobani
Founder: Hamdi Ulukaya
Chief Marketing and Brand Officer: Peter McGuinness
Marketing: Jessica Lauria, Scott Bacco, Danielle Palmer
Communications: Michael Gonda, Blair Aires

Creative Agency: Opperman Weiss
Creative Directors: Paul Opperman, Jeff Weiss, Antonio Navas
Design & Integration Director: Benjamin Bailey

Executive Producer: Mark Johnston
Managing Director: Julian Shiff
Account Supervisor: Alexa Beck

Production Co.: SUPERPRIME
Director: Laurence Dunmore
Executive Producer: Rebecca Skinner
Executive Producer: Roger Zorovich
Managing Director: Michelle Ross
Producer: Michele Abbott
DP: Jeff Cronenweth

Editorial Co.: Bug Editorial
Editor: Andre Betz
Executive Producer: Caitlin Grady

Color: The Mill NY
Colorist: Fergus McCall
Senior Color Producer: Natalie Westerfield

VFX: Blacksmith
Flame Artist: Danny Morris
Executive Producer: Charlotte Arnold
Producer: Bomyee Hwang

Music: Duotone
Music By: Jack Livesey
Executive Producer: David Leinheardt
Producer: Gio Loboto

Mix: Heard City
Mixer: Cory Melious
Managing Director: Gloria Pitagorsky
Producer: Sasha Awn

Strategic Partnerships: DDCD
PR Agency: Weber Shandwick
Media Agency: OMD
Shopper Agency: Momentum
Digital Agency: RGA

Bacardi, OW Get Revolutionary with Rum

You rumdrinkers out there might not have known this while pounding down eight dollar shots at trendy bars, but Bacardi Rum has quite the historical significance. Think Cuban Revolution, Spanish-American War, and the Rough Riders. I don’t remember learning about any of these connections in social studies class – hmm, I wonder why, board of education? – but thanks to OppermanWeiss, “¡Vivimos!” the history of Emilio Bacardi Moreau and his company’s revolutionary roots will be on display in the coming weeks with a cinematic spin.

The above clip is the second ¡Vivimos! spot from OW and director Jake Scott, featuring a handsome and thinly mustachioed version of Emilio Bacardi Moreau set to a grainy image filter. The video does embellish a bit, making it appear as if our Bacardi hero was going to be gunned down spaghetti western style. Truthfully, or at least according to the Bacardi website, Bacardi Moreau was exiled from Cuba to North Africa twice, but who are we to nitpick with an actiony marketing campaign 115 years after the fact? Also be on the lookout for the ad in movie theaters, because Bacardi and Screen Vision partnered to put the clip on 100,000 screens across the country. And if you are really into Cuban revolutions, the brand is unrolling added content through Shazam, so everyone can also vivimos with their smartphones out.

Credits after the jump.

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