Chris Einhauser Leaves Droga5 to Join Zambezi as Group Account Director

Los Angeles-based independent agency Zambezi hired Chris Einhauser as group account director, focusing on the Cox Automotive’s Autotrader and Kelley Blue Book brands and reporting directly to Zambezi partner and managing director Pete Brown

“Chris is a fantastic people person and a top notch ad man,” Brown said in a statement. “He has experience with some of the greatest brands in the business. He’ll be an incredible asset for Zambezi and for our client Cox Automotive as we continue to grow both our brands. We’re totally excited to have him join us.”

Einhauser joins Zambezi from Droga5 New York, where he has spent nearly two and a half years as a senior account director on Smartwater, Dun & Bradstreet, Chase Bank and Johnsonville Sausage. Before joining Droga5, he spent a little over a year as vice president, account director at Grey New York, where he worked on the agency’s LongHorn Steakhouse account. Einhauser has also served stints in account supervisor roles at Cramer-Krasselt and Venables Bell & Partners.

“I’m so happy to join an agency that is doing amazing work and pumped to be working across the iconic Kelley Blue Book and Autotrader brands,” said the newest Zambezi employee. “I’m a relationship guy. I prefer open doors, candid discussions and a personable work environment between clients and colleagues. That’s what fosters a great partnership and ultimately the best outputs, and that’s what Zambezi is all about.”

Einhauser’s marks the latest in a string of new hires at Zambezi in recent months, including Janine Zaim as its first director of recruiting last month, executive director of technology Justice Erolin in July, marketing and business development Josie Brown in May and group strategy director Ryan Richards/account director Gordon Gray in March.

VEEV Wants You to ‘Cheat on Your Vodka’

Zambezi has a new campaign for VEEV, “the world’s first Acai berry spirit,” asking you to “Cheat on your vodka.” As you may recall, this comes on the heels of Nail’s “Cheat on Greek” campaign for Stonyfiueld Organic, so it would appear that figurative adultery with food and beverages is popular at the moment.

For “Cheat on your vodka,” Zambezi imagines vodka as a grotesque older woman who has apparently been peeling potatoes (you know, because vodka is made from potatoes), questioning a man who she believes is cheating on her. She asks if she’s “too boring” and if she doesn’t “mix as well,” claiming she can smell betrayal on him. He’s pretty quick to relent, admitting his betrayal of vodka for VEEV without much pressure. The ad will run in 60 and 30 second formats online as both pre-roll and in-ad placements. It marks the first marketing campaign for VEEV since its 2007 inception. (more…)

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INSA Creates ‘Make Your Own Way’ Gif-fiti for Dwyane Wade, Li-Ning

Dwyane Wade and shoe brand Li-Ning, who partnered up last year, commissioned renowned British street artist INSA to create a “Make Your Own Way” mural bringing the Miami Heat star’s philosophy to life. But INSA didn’t just stop at creating the 30 x 20 foot mural, utilizing red, white, and black — the predominant colors used for Wade’s Overtown shoe. He created an animated gif of the mural, which he calls “gif-fiti.”

The unveiling of the mural, located in the Art District of Miami, was timed to coincide with the launch of Wade’s Li-Ning sneaker Way of Wade 2.0: Overtown, as well as Art Basel. Both Wade and INSA were happy to work together on the project. Wade said INSA “was a natural fit for Li-Ning Way of Wade as his style is bold and unique.”

INSA, meanwhile, claims that Wade’s “Make Your Own Way” message really resonates with him. “Wade is carving his own path and that resonates with me. I feel like I have lived my life the same way,” said the artist.

Creative agency Zambezi, put together a 2:34 video documenting the creation of the mural and subsequent gif, (featured above). It’s a really interesting look at INSA and his process, offering insights not only into this particular piece but into INSA’s outlook and philosophy. He begins by explaining how making .gifs really brought back vitality to his work at a time when he was growing tired of standard graffiti murals. If you’re at all interested in INSA or street art, it’s well worth the time. While “gif-fiti” is a new one to me — and I have to admit I was a bit skeptical about it — INSA is doing intriguing things with it, bringing his art to life in ways otherwise impossible, while exposing his work to an entirely new audience.

INSA’s “Make Your Own Way” gif will go live on Brand Wade’s Instagram page today at noon. And if you’re in Miami you can find the mural at 286 NW 29th St and 3rd Avenue, Wynwood Miami, Fl 33137.  continued…

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Here’s a Social Media Campaign for Fruitwater Starring Murder Suspect Christina Applegate

Glaceau has a new product, fruitwater, that is most likely 0-calorie sparkling fruit-flavored water. I can’t tell from this spot, but that’s my guess. Sounds like just the thing a rich  woman would use to cut her vodka, doesn’t it? It’s great that there’s definitely a customer base for this new product.

To push fruitwater onto said rich women is one of their own, Christina Applegate, best known for playing Kelly Bundy on Married… with Children and jumping ship before her NBC show, Up All Night, was canceled. According to Wikipedia, her mom also used to have a thing with Stephen Stills, so that’s something.

In order to grow fruitwater’s 4,000 or so Twitter followers to a substantial enough number to convince some brand reps that their social media is “working,” consumers are being encouraged to confess crimes and say mean things via the #sparklingtruth hashtag for a campaign from L.A.-based agency Zambezi. If your truth is good enough, fruitwater will give you a personal assistant for a week. But, of course, the only way you could know that is if you start following the account or, like me, you were sent a press release describing the contest. You gotta work for information on the incentive, you know? Credits after the jump.

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