MDC Partners Acquires Forsman & Bodenfors for ‘Strategic Partnership’ with CP+B

MDC Partners has acquired Swedish agency Forsman & Bodenfors, which will in turn form a “strategic global partnership” with CP+B.

At least we assume that’s the news. The press release does not include the word “acquisition” and mentions nothing about what portion of the agency MDC will own. It does, however, note the newly empowered network’s plan to unleash “an arsenal of extraordinary creative talent” by giving CP+B access to international staffers.

F&B is, of course, best known for the 2013 “Epic Split” campaign for Volvo Trucks starring Jean-Claude Van Damme. This past December Volvo designated Forsman & Bodenfors as its global strategic creative agency, and recent work for the client includes the “Prologue” launch spot for its “Made in Sweden” campaign, arriving ahead of the UEFA Euro 2016 tournament and starring Sweden national team captain Zlatan Ibrahimovic. Last September, the agency also teamed up with Iggy Pop in a spot for  H&M called “Close the Loop.”

Since its 1986 inception, the agency has grown to a team of 300, led by CEO Erik Sollenberg and chairman Anna Qvennerstedt

“I love Forsman & Bodenfors,” said CP+B chairman Chuck Porter, in a statement. “They only care about great work, and we share so much DNA they’re like our twin who grew up in Sweden. This business always needs re-invention and I think amazing things will come out of this partnership.”

“What we are creating is a fresh, seamless way to tap into the most potent collection of creative talent in the world,” added CP+B global CEO Lori Senecal. “At CP+B we’re building a modern global model that challenges the conventions of legacy agencies.  What ultimately makes us most valuable to global marketers is creating the boldest most inventive ideas that deliver the highest return on creativity, and this partnership amplifies our mission to do that more consistently and brilliantly than ever before.”

Forsman & Bodenfors Celebrates Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s ‘Prologue’ for Volvo

Ahead of UEFA Euro 2016, Forsman & Bodenfors launched a campaign for Volvo stoking Swedish pride around striker and Sweden national team captain Zlatan Ibrahimovic.

The first lengthy spot, entitled “Prologue,” focuses on the national star’s humble beginnings as the child of Croatian and Bosnian immigrants growing up in a small Swedish suburb. Ibrahimovic relates his story via voiceover as he broodingly watches his own highlight reel and attacks a punching bag until his hands are inflamed. “I didn’t have much,” he says, “just my restless mind and my big dreams.”

“I wanted to go further than anyone else,” he continues as a Volvo V90 speeds down the road, establishing a connection between Sweden’s star soccer player and auto manufacturer,” so I did, my way. I didn’t think like them. I worked harder than anyone, anywhere.”

The big payoff for the connection comes at the end of the spot, with the tagline “Made by Sweden” referencing both the brand and the celebrity endorser. Forsman & Bodenfors’ cinematic anthem ad is set to a soundtrack provided by Hans Zimmer, who has composed or produced for such films as Interstellar, Inception and The Prestige. Clearly Volvo and Forsman & Bodenfors spared no expense in making their effort for the impending European tournament as epic as possible.

“Prologue” made its debut on U.K. social media, digital and video on demand platforms on May 30. Broadcast spots are scheduled for June 17 and 22, when Sweden will play its final group stage matches.

“The campaign is a celebration of the independent mind, of the power that lies in the ability to think differently. There are many similarities between Zlatan’s and Volvo’s journeys,” Anders Gustafsson, senior vice president of Volvo for Europe, Middle East and Africa told The Drum. “We haven’t got to where we are now by doing the same as everyone else.”

This work follows the carmaker decision to pick F&B as its global strategic/creative agency over incumbent Grey London last December. A February campaign then laid out the brand’s future “vision”: no deaths or serious injuries in a Volvo by 2020.

Volvo: Made by Sweden

Não a voz de Enya cantando Only Time. Tampouco tem Jean-Claude Van Damme fazendo espacate. Ainda assim, o novo comercial da Volvo merece ser visto. Desta vez, o jogador de futebol Zlatan Ibrahimovic protagoniza o filme que tem por objetivo celebrar a Suécia.

Made by Sweden mostra como as particularidades da geografia e clima do país se refletem em seu povo e, obviamente, em seus carros. Ibrahimovic aparece desafiando a natureza selvagem, personificando as qualidades da marca.

A criação é da Forsman & Bodenfors, com direção de Seb Edwards.

volvo

Brainstorm9Post originalmente publicado no Brainstorm #9
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