Live from New York..It’s an Autotrader ad!
That’s right, the latest in Autotrader’s “Finally, It’s Easy” campaign from 72andSunny New York are ads starring comedic actor and entertainer Kenan Thompson. In the new 15- and 30-second TV spots, Thompson talks to his home’s AI-enabled smart devices and appliances, casually discussing how easy it is to buy a car from home with Autotrader.
In the 30-second spot The SNL star’s smart home devices start chanting “never leave home” after discovering the car site’s mobile car buying feature. However their mood quickly shifts when Thomspon actually goes outside to drive his new car. This leaves the AI-fridge to shout Kenan's name as a last desperate attempt to make him come back.
In addition to the new ads starring Thompson, Autotrader also debuts additional creative for TV, radio, digital and social media as part of the next installment in the “Finally, It’s Easy” campaign.
This week apparel brand Everlane launched its largest campaign to date. The “Get into Denim” campaign was developed by Shu Hung, who joined as Everlane’s VP, global brand creative director from Uniqlo this year. The company also partnered with agencies Media by Mother and Frosty Pop on the project.
Not only is this Hung’s first campaign, but it is also the first under the company’s Chief Marketing Officer Sophie Bambuck. It includes a 30-second video spot that features a diverse cast rocking various denim jeans and jean jackets.
“The last 18 months have made it clear: there is no better time than the present to confidently be whomever you want to be,” Bambuck said in a statement. “'Our first denim campaign in two years captures this idea. We feature individuals who are making the world better by being unapologetically themselves, all wearing our organic denim that’s made better for the planet.”
The video will be shown on Hulu, YouTube, Instagram, and the company's site. The national campaign will also include out-of-home wild postings in Austin, Seattle, Los Angeles and New York. This is Everlane’s first push into longer-term brand-building work.
“Everlane’s approach to this campaign is a view into how creative development is evolving for brands that have their history in a digital world. ” David Gaines, CEO and founder, Media by Mother said in a statement. “We worked directly with the creative team from Day 1. Data from real-world actions helped inform not just the shape of the content and how it needed to work, but even things like the flow of story arcs based upon how we see the audience engage with content."
Corteva Agriscience and Ogilvy launched the latest installment of their series "The Heart of the Farm.” To honor Hispanic Heritage month, the “The Journey of a Dream" video features farmer Lauro Gutierrez, whose great-grandparents moved their ranching operation from Mexico to Texas. Gutierrez and his wife, Mary-Lou, discuss what lessons they pass on to their children and the life of living and running a farm.
The first film in the series,“Growing with Pride,” which was launched during Pride Month, features Leon Etchepare, a fourth-generation farmer, telling the story of coming out to his father, meeting his husband Andrew, starting a family, and continuing the generational farming legacy.
Here’s something to make your mouth water. Luxury chocolate brand Hotel Chocolat has appointed London agency Gravity Road, part of the You & Mr Jones group, to handle its marketing. Its work will include the brand’s first ever TV campaign, promoting the company’s “Velvetiser” product, which creates barista-quality chocolate drinks at home. The spot debuts tonight during broadcaster Channel 4's "Gogglebox." In a bid for Hotel Chocolat to become the “first ever digitally-led chocolate brand,” Velvetiser content is also being created in partnership with foodie innovators and wellness influencers on either side of the Atlantic, including on TikTok, where there is already a thriving #Velvetiser creator community with almost 10 million views.
If you love disco and cats then you’ll love Via’s latest campaign for Arm & Hammer. The “Slide out of funk” campaign promoting Arm & Hammer’s Slide cat litter conceptualizes a disco hall with human-like cats on the dance floor. One cat is seen sliding across the floor while other cats admire his dance moves. The 15-second spot was launched nationally and shared across social media, animated display banners, and print ads.
Tim Ringel, former CEO of MediaBrands’ Reprise Digital and Spring Studios, is spearheading a new holding company called Meet the People. Beyond Ringel who will operate as co-founder and global CEO, the company will also be led by Tom Armbruster, co-founder and global chief operating officer, and Natalie Alberta Dusey, global chief of staff and corporate secretary.
Meet The People currently oversees three agencies totaling more than 350 people: VSA Partners, a creative, design and branding agency; integrated agency Public Label, and Match Retail, a sales, merchandising and branded retail agency. Under the new model, each agency will work together as a community while retaining its own identity and culture.
The company is backed by Innovatus Capital Partners and will be starting in North America with up to $150 million of capital to deploy in the next 24 months.
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Two by Four has tapped Jessica Romaniuk to be its Chicago office’s first-ever president. The office was previously led by the agency’s CEO, David Stevenson, who Romaniuk will report to in her new role. Romaniuk first joined the agency in 2018 and most recently served as VP of media, social, and public relations. Ken Pasternak continues to lead the San Francisco office.
Two other promotions include Amy Corbett, who has been named to the newly created role of director of client services, and Annie Tsikretsis, who has been elevated to senior VP and will continue to serve as director of production. Corbett's new role was previously held by Tom Browning, who is no longer with the agency according to a spokeswoman for the agency. They will maintain their previous responsibilities as they take on these new positions.
Labelium Canada has been named digital agency of record for Bestseller Canada, a vertical fashion company that designs, sources, distributes and markets a number of clothing brands including Jack & Jones and Vero Moda.
Toronto-based agency King Ursa has brought on Dylan Dempsey as the agency’s first VP of technology. In this new role Dempsey will oversee King Ursa’s technical direction and offer marketing technology acumen to King Ursa’s clients which include Qtrade, James Ready Beer, Twisted Tea, Jobber, Timberland, Voxtur, and Maple Lodge Farms, and others.
San Jose-based Liquid Agency has brought on Justin Peters as its first-ever chief design officer. Peters previously held multiple creative leadership roles at agencies like The Brand Consultancy, Carbone Simolan Agency, and Siegal+Gale.
