Hasta La Creative!

Here’s a massive Friday News Dump from IPG: the offices of Mullen and Lowe and Partners around the world will merge to form Mullen Lowe Group.

That means no more Lowe Campbell Ewald and no more Mullen…as we knew them, at least.

The release, which describes the resulting Group as “a creatively-driven global agency network with a strong, shared entrepreneurial heritage and challenger mentality,” also tells us that Mullen CEO Alex Leikikh will be the new entity’s chief executive. Michael Wall, CEO of Lowe and Partners up to this point, helped “create the roadmap” for the move but will have no role in MLG because…?

IPG CEO Michael Roth, citing the groups’ “complimentary cultures,” says the goal of this play is to continue Lowe’s “global growth” in part by giving Leikikh “a global stage” and empowering him to lead “one of the industry’s outstanding creative networks.”

Leikikh himself says:

“We are only as good as the talent we can attract and we owe it to our clients to put the world’s best minds to bear on their brands.”

Of course, there’s also talk of MORE DIGITAL from Wall, who says “The US is the key piece to accelerating this performance.”

On the organizational front, this means:

• The new Mullen Lowe Group will oversee Mullen’s offices in Boston, LA, and North Carolina; they will now be Mullen Lowe
• New York’s Lowe Profero will “report into” MLG, which will open its own separate office in Manhattan
• Campbell Ewald will “continue to access the international network as required” and will “operate independently” within the MLG network
• MLG will also oversee all Lowe offices in the UK

The release contains no information on the most important aspect of the move: who will get hired and who will get fired. We also have no idea how the new entity’s logo will look, presumably because IPG was in such a rush to get the news out.

We would say updates to come, but we assume that this change will not affect Mullen’s inexplicable refusal to respond to our queries on anything.

Lowe Campbell Ewald New York launched a new campaign for Sun Products Snuggle, introducing the new fragrance Fresh Spring Flowers.

Aside from the new scent, the campaign, entitled “Crescendo” (for some reason), isn’t really anything new from the brand. In the 30-second spot above, the brand’s teddy bear mascot introduces the Fresh Spring Flowers scent, cut with footage of a young family doing laundry, lounging on a soft, pink blanket inside and outside on a hammock, and enjoying an outdoor movie screening. The Snuggle bear promises (in a voice some may find irritating) the detergent “stays fresh for 30 days, with the value you love” and promises it is “the ultimate in snuggly softness.” Of course, the ad is targeted directly at families with small children, who the mascot is designed to appeal to. According to a statement, the “Crescendo” campaign is “part of Sun Products’ larger campaign focused on storytelling – bringing attention to rich family moments.”

Credits:

Chief Creative Officer:  Mark Simon                                                                                                                                                                                                  Executive Creative Director:  Chip Rich

Art Director:  Kelley Samanka                                                                                                                                                                                                                 Copywriter: Erin McHugh                                                                                                                                                                                                                        Producers: Matt Joyner                                                                                                                                                                                                                                          Account Team: Jonathan Lange, Joseph Witmer

Production Company: Rebolucion                                                                                                                                                                                                       Director: Baby                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             Director of Photography: Critian Cottet                                                                                                                                                                                         Executive Producer: Ezequiel Ortiz                                                                                                                                                                                                            Line Producer: Marcelo Dovidio

Editing House: Cutting Room                                                                                                                                                                                                                   Editor: Merritt Duff                                                                                                                                                                                                                                Producer: Tara Holmes                                                                                                                

Music House: MAS – Music and Strategy                                                                                                                                                                                       Composer:  Vanessa James                                                                                                                                                                                                                 Producer: Jenn Johnson                                                                                                                

Audio Mix: Cutting Room                                                                                                                                                                                                                                         Mixer: Walter Bianco

Today we hear from multiple sources that staffing cuts occurred this week at Detroit’s Lowe Campbell Ewald.

The last few months have witnessed several big changes for the agency: in September, news broke that Hill Holliday had lost the Cadillac account, that IPG would be folding its Rogue unit, and that LCE would handle creative for the client moving forward. After that shakeup, Managing Director Kevin Wertz assumed the role of president reporting to CEO Jim Palmer in a move that also saw the departure of longtime COO Kathleen Donald and the promotion of several other executives.

The client, however, surprised many in the industry one month ago, confirming rumors that it had been “quietly talking to other agencies“ by choosing Publicis Worldwide as its AOR.

Lowe Campbell Ewald has not responded to multiple requests for comment, but more than one source lists the total number of employees who are no longer with the agency as of this afternoon at 30; another source claims that this group includes Group Digital Creative Director Iain Lanivich of 2013?s “We’re moving to Detroit and so should you” video. Since the agency employs approximately 500, these numbers would amount to less than ten percent of its total workforce.

Updates as we receive them.

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This morning brings both official and unofficial news from Detroit-based Lowe Campbell Ewald.

From the press release, Managing Director Kevin Wertz is now the agency’s president. Wertz joined LCE in 2007 and moved to Texas in 2009 to open its San Antonio office; in the new role he will split his time between Texas and Michigan, reporting directly to CEO Jim Palmer.

This announcement comes two weeks after LCE officially won the Cadillac account from Hill Holliday, but Wertz will not manage that client; his new responsibilities include leading all of the agency’s non-automotive accounts in both offices as well as handling “media, strategic planning, analytics, digital strategy and social media capabilities.” Prior to joining Lowe, he served as VP/account director at Doner.

(more…)

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Lowe Campbell Ewald has earned a cause as much as a client by securing of the U.S. Fund for UNICEF–which supports UNICEF’s work through fundraising, education and advocacy in the United States–following a competitive review.

Typically, UNICEF has worked with agencies on a pro-bono basis. But times are changing, donors are reducing their “gives” and competition is growing. These factors led UNICEF to increase its paid approach to strategy and partner with the Interpublic shop.

“It is an honor to be awarded the opportunity to work with the U.S. Fund for UNICEF,” said Sal Taibi, president of Lowe Campbell Ewald’s New York Office. “UNICEF’s mission to save and protect the world’s most vulnerable children could not be better aligned to our mantra to create work with purpose. We are eager to begin working with the organization to advance such a noble and purposeful effort.”

According to Kantar Media, UNICEF’s U.S. media spend last year was $16.8 million, up from $12.8 million a year earlier (Publicis Groupe’s MediaVest is UNICEF’s media agency).

The account will be run out of Lowe Campbell Ewald’s New York office.

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Lowe Campbell Ewald, Los Angeles teamed up with newly created brand Energy Upgrade California in a state government effort to start a conversation around energy and water use management in anticipation of the summer drought season, predicted to be one of the worst in the state’s history.

Since California is a fragmented state, with its citizens pledging allegiance to a specific region, Lowe Campbell Ewald knew they needed to draw on a unifying factor. So they leveraged the bear from California’s state flag, turning him into a relatable character who sits atop the flagpole by day and educates Californians on how they can help California stay golden once his work day is over. In the spot, he shares valuable tips like replacing old bulbs with LEDs, and using a programmable thermostat. He ends the spot by directing viewers to Energy Upgrade’s site. With a perilous drought season ahead, hopefully citizens of the Golden State heed his advice. Credits after the jump. continued…

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Lowe Campbell Ewald marks the end of an era today, with their campaign for Milk Processor Education Program (MilkPEP) offering up a new tagline that shifts away from the iconic “Got Milk?” line that seems like it’s been around forever.

Although the “Got Milk?” tagline will still be used in some markets, such as California (where the processors are reportedly still with Goodby), the campaign is largely fazing out the popular tagline in favor of “Milk Life” — which may or may not be inspired by “Thug Life.” Lowe Campbell Ewald’s multi-million dollar integrated campaign focuses on milk’s health benefits (fitting the new tagline), most notably as a strong source of protein.

“Got Milk has very high awareness,” Sal Taibi, president at Lowe Cambell Ewald, New York told AdAge, “But we have a new strategy. We have a new message and we just felt we needed a new approach.”

At the heart of the “Milk Life” campaign is the new anthem spot featured above, which “spotlights everyday moments of accomplishment, achievement and enjoyment, showing milk with the latest in graphic and animation technology to bring to life how families who include milk’s protein at breakfast make the most of their day.” The obviously high-budget visuals are impressive enough, and the spot is fairly well put-together, but I’ve got to say I really miss the milk mustaches. In addition to the 30 second anthem spot, the campaign also includes “print, TV and digital advertising, consumer and retail promotions, public relations and social media” — presumably also devoid of milk mustaches. The “Milk Life” campaign also marks the first work to come out of Lowe Campbell Ewald’s recently opened New York office. Stick around for credits after the jump, and let us know what you think of the new direction in the comments section. continued…

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