Del Taco hires Carat

Del Taco named Dentsu’s Carat as its new media agency of record in the U.S. Dentsu has worked with the Mexican food chain's parent company, Jack in the Box, over the last five years. Jack in the Box acquired Del Taco last year. 

It was not immediately clear which agency previously held the account. Carat will begin working with the brand in the spring. 

The shop's focus will include “up-leveling the brand’s local market approach,” according to a statement by the agency. From January 2022 through September 2022, Del Taco spent $10.1 million on measured media, according to Vivix. This is slightly higher than the $7.9 million the brand spent within the same timeframe in 2021. For all of 2021, Del Taco spent $11.5 million on measured media.

Havas’ new JBL campaign is 'on peak'

JBL launched its new Endurance Peak 3 Earbuds with a snowboarding event that encouraged participants to reach new heights. The event, “Peaks on Peaks,” was created by Annex88, a culture-focused agency that is part of the Havas Creative Network, in partnership with Havas Media. This is the first campaign Havas has done for JBL since being named AOR late last year.

Taking place in Park City, Utah, “Peaks on Peaks” showcased the new earbuds, along with a limited-edition capsule collection of outerwear printed with artwork by artist Travis Spinks. Russell Winfield, the first Black professional snowboarder, served as the creative director for the event.

JBL global ambassador and professional snowboarder, Zeb Powell, shredded the slope course wearing the Endurance Peak 3 earbuds along with an all-star team of elite snowboarders. 

Girl Scouts USA picks Venables Bell + Partners

Girl Scouts of the USA selected independent agency Venables Bell + Partners as its agency of record following a review. VB+P will lead brand-building efforts for the organization, spanning research, brand platform and creative development to better connect with today's Girl Scouts. The agency’s content and creation studio, Taproom Studios, will lead marketing services to support recruitment campaigns, the Girl Scout Cookie Program and other top initiatives. 

“We selected VB+P based on their intent, capabilities and responsiveness,” Girl Scouts of the USA Chief Marketing Officer Jocelyn Johnson said in a statement. “VB+P approached our RFP with the intent of ‘doing right by clients and people,’ which aligns with our core values at GSUSA.” 

It was not immediately clear which agency previously held the account.

El Pollo Loco goes loco for Organic

El Pollo Loco named Omnicom’s digital agency Organic as its brand and digital agency of record, which includes lead creative duties. The fire-grilled chicken restaurant chain had previously worked with Vitro as its creative AOR. This is an expansion of Organic’s duties with the company since it had been named El Pollo Loco’s digital AOR in 2021.

The agency’s first campaign, called “Sabor,” which means “flavor” in Spanish, will break on Feb. 23 on digital and Feb. 27 on broadcast. The media spend for the campaign is $32 million, according to the company, and it will run in California, Colorado, Nevada, Arizona, Utah, Texas and Louisiana.

“Organic provided a comprehensive approach that allowed us to stay in touch with our core customer base and provide an exciting on-ramp to the customers we are looking to attract in the future,” Andy Rebhun, CMO of El Pollo Loco, said in a statement. “Organic’s ability to utilize data and insights to drive the strategic approach to the business was one of its strengths."

Ex-WPP exec on the move

Former WPP executive George S. Rogers has been named Executive Chairman of Optimal, the digital performance marketing portfolio company owned by ORIX Capital Partners.

While at WPP, Rogers was director of global business development and worked across brands including the Walgreens Boots Alliance, MillerCoors, Bank of America and Pfizer. In his new role at Optimal, Mr. Rogers will be responsible for business development and overall leadership of the company, alongside Optimal’s Chief Executive Officer Michael Bassik and Co-Founder Kevin Weisberg.

Rogers joins Optimal from ad agency The Fantastical, where he was managing partner and chief operating officer. Earlier in his career, Rogers served as CEO of Global Team Blue, WPP's agency servicing Ford Motor Co.

Just briefly

Stagwell has added digital product and design agency YML to its Code and Theory network of digital agencies. Dan Gardner, co-founder and executive chairman of  Code and Theory and CEO Mike Treff will lead the Code and Theory Network, while YML will continue to be led by CEO and Co-Founder Ashish Toshniwal. YML will keep its agency name moving forward.

BMW Motorrad USA has named Tombras as its advertising and social media agency of record, which includes creative duties. The company had previously been working with Hill Holiday as its creative AOR since 2019.

Lloyds Banking Group has appointed Ogilvy Experience its digital marketing creative partner after a competitive pitch, which was managed by Ingenuity. Ogilvy will begin work with the company in April to work across Lloyd’s portfolio of brands.