Zola names Arts & Letters as its lead creative partner and Resorts World gets animated: Agency Brief

Zola gets hitched Online wedding company Zola has named Arts & Letters its first lead creative agency following a client-led pitch. The Richmond, Virginia-based agency will be tasked with developing and executing a full-scale brand repositioning and relaunch slated for the second half of 2022, according to a statement by the agency. The new brand positioning will be focused on promoting Zola as a “full wedding ecosystem” rather than just a registry, according to a spokeswoman for the agency. “We are honored and excited to be working with the team at Zola,” said Charles Hodges, Arts & Letters founder and executive creative director. “As a brand, they are innovative by nature, and experts at finding and exploring untapped or underserved corners of the ever-growing wedding market. We had an instant connection with them, a mutual challenger mindset, and a shared desire to unlock the boundless potential of the brand. We can’t wait to get started." In the first nine months of 2021, Zola spent $6 million on U.S. measured media, which is up from $4.6 million in the first nine months of 2020, a 31% increase, according to Kantar. In 2019, the brand made headlines when the Hallmark Channel stopped airing one of its commercials by Mekanism that featured a same-sex couple getting married. The channel reversed course after receiving public criticism from celebrities and politicians. Earlier this month Zola launched its first commercial of the year titled “Embrace the Possibilities.” This is part of continued growth for the agency, which has doubled in size since 2019 to 180 employees and has added clients like Tito’s Vodka, CarLotz, and new assignments from Google, ESPN, and NBC News. Ad Age’s A-List gala is back! After two years, Ad Age will be hosting its A-List & Creativity Awards Gala in person on April 25th. The event will be hosted at Cipriani Wall Street. Doors open at 6pm EDT and the current dress code is creative black tie. All guests are required to show proof of vaccination. We look forward to seeing you again! For tickets and further information, click here. Feeling green Bowery Farming, the largest vertical farming company in the U.S., and creative agency Colossus worked together to create the “Feel good greens” campaign meant to inspire everyone to eat and feel their best. Bowery has offered fresh, pesticide-free, non-GMO, leafy greens since 2015. The indoor farms are 100 times more productive than traditional agriculture and because it doesn’t have to worry about the weather, Bowery grows multiple varieties of leafy greens and herbs all year round. The whimsical campaign is meant to raise awareness of the benefits of vertically farmed produce. The visuals are inspired by the illustrations of French artist Laurène Boglio, with whom the agency partnered to create original artwork for the campaign. It tackles many relatable topics today such as NFTs and meme culture. “Despite vertically farmed produce being widely available, it’s still a relatively new concept to many consumers,” said Travis Robertson, executive creative director at Colossus. “We wanted to signal that the world’s freshest greens are grown in a manner completely different from anything you’ve ever imagined. Bowery Farming is changing the way we think about agriculture and reimagining what a flavorful future tastes like, all with a sense of humor.” One part of the campaign says “You think an NFT is a sports league,” plus “And you just found out you’re a meme,” next to a package of tasty baby kale. The newest campaign is meant to target the New York tri-state area and the Mid-Atlantic. It spans print, digital and social media and will be plastered throughout New York City subways, with 150 placements in the Broadway-Lafayette station alone. The Las Vegas strip just got brighter Digital Kitchen, a member of Sid Lee’s creative community, has teamed up with Resorts World Las Vegas to create short films to feature Las Vegas’s newest hotel. The company crafted a range of short films to excite visitors and extend the Resorts World experience. The films take viewers on a psychedelic experience with a cat named Cheddar flying around in space, people telling a love story through dance, lots of dripped gold and an array of colors, all featured on the largest LED screens in North America. “The opportunity to partner creatively with Resorts World Las Vegas and create pieces of work that bring people together was extremely meaningful to our team,” said Cam Levin, chief creative officer at Digital Kitchen and Sid Lee in the USA. “The animated visual tapestry we developed for Resorts World Las Vegas touches on a myriad of themes and speaks to our intent to create worlds beyond belief.” It's glorious Buchanan’s Scotch Whiskey has teamed up with Los Angeles-based brand and designers Kids of Immigrants to launch a limited-edition collection that celebrates the duality of being Hispanic American. The “What Glory We Are” collection includes a beanies, hoodies and sweatpants. All proceeds from the collection will go to Los Angeles-based non-profit No Us Without You L.A., which is dedicated to providing food relief to the most disenfranchised hospitality workers affected by the pandemic. This is the latest iteration of Buchanan’s campaign that launched in October. The brand worked with PR agencies Hunter and Starpower to help with talent procurement. Stop the flood The News Literacy Project brought on Saatchi & Saatchi for its latest campaign to promote the organization’s National News Literacy Week which begins on January 24th. The pro bono campaign is led by a PSA video that shows multiple people in an elevator using their phones to read various news articles. A narration begins by stating “We are being flooded with false misinformation.” As the people in the elevator share misinformation on their phones, the elevator gradually becomes filled with water, causing them to almost drown. The flooding eventually stops and there’s a final caption on the screen that reads, “Stop the flood of misinformation.” The campaign will run in print, digital, and on broadcast TV, through various E.W. Scripps-owned stations. Havas Chicago hires new president Havas Chicago’s Chief Creative Officer Myra Nussbaum has been promoted to the dual role of both president and chief creative officer of the creative agency. Previous President Nikki Laughlin left to join a company called Accelerate 360. Nussbaum will report directly to CEO Stephanie Nerlich Nussbaum became the first woman chief creative officer within Havas’ North American creative network in March of 2021 and is now the first person to hold the dual role. In addition to her current responsibilities, she will add agency leadership duties such as strategic oversight and guidance to her everyday tasks. “Havas Chicago’s former president, Nikki Laughlin, left the agency in the fall of 2021,” Nerlich said. “Because creativity is at the center of Havas, Myra has informally acted as an agency leader, working closely with me and Village executives to ensure network synergies and collaboration. It was this organic leadership acumen that convinced us that Myra is the right person for the new dual role.” Just briefly Joan has been tapped as lead global agency for S&P Global, which provides credit ratings, benchmarks and analytics for capital and commodity markets. The agency will break the company’s first global brand campaign later this year based on a new strategic foundation for the company. “We are excited to be S&P Global's partner in defining the next stage of their growth. This company makes such a profound impact on all of our lives, from the indices that underpin retirement accounts to measuring the impact of progress towards sustainable goals,” said Lisa Clunie, co-founder and CEO of Joan. Wunderman Thompson has promoted Tony Weber to chief data officer of North America. Weber first joined the agency in 2017 as principal consultant, where he led digital transformation initiatives. He began his new role at the end of 2021. Minneapolis-based agency Periscope has tapped Mike Caguin as its new chief creative officer, effective February, 14. He joins from Colle McVoy, where he has worked for 15 years, most recently serving as chief creative officer. The agency has been looking to fill the role since May 2021 after the departure of the previous Chief Creative Officer Peter Nicholson. Global talent agency UTA has brought on Lindsay Wagner as its first chief diversity officer. Prior to joining the company, Wagner served as senior VP and head of diversity, equity and inclusion, North America at Ketchum. Brand Citizens, a purpose and impact consultancy spun out of 72andSunny, has named Lauryn Nwankpa as its new co-managing director, replacing Elisha Greenwell who left the agency to pursue new opportunities, according to a spokeswoman for 72andSunny. Digital agency Shift Paradigm has named Elizabeth Ross as its new CEO, replacing the agency’s co-founder Morgan Stewart, who will move into a new position on Shift Paradigm’s board of directors. Ross most recently served as chief marketing officer of Bright Health Group. Prior to that she served as CEO of Minneapolis agency Periscope. Los Angeles-based Observatory has named Brenden Shields-Shimzu as its first president and chief operating officer. Shields-Shimizu was most recently managing director and head of the brand team, where he led work for Chipotle, Marriott, AB InBev, Bonobos, Netflix and Nike, among others. His previous position will be filled by Caroline Doyle, who currently oversees the agency’s Netflix and Treasury Wine Estates accounts. The agency has also brought on Hunter Leigh Hall and Ben Majoy for new roles as creative directors. The Singapore Tourism Board has appointed Publicis Groupe to handle its integrated creative and media account with a brief to reinvigorate tourism after the pandemic. The team, which spans creative shop BBH, media agency Zenith, integrated marketing agency Digitas and production platform Prodigious, will handle the account as a Power of One team called Shophouse@Publicis. Teams from WPP’s VMLY&R, Havas’ BLKJ and Omnicom’s BBDO are also understood to have pitched for the brief, which is worth $73 million over a period of five years. Omnicom’s TBWA was the incumbent. Stagwell announced that Stagwell Media Network agencies MMI and Media Kitchen are merging under the MMI brand. The enhanced agency boasts 175 employees, 130 from MMI and 45 from Media Kitchen. Clients include Amazon, Gillette, Loews Hotels, Olay, Pantene, and Waste Management.

Zola names Arts & Letters as its lead creative partner and Resorts World gets animated: Agency Brief

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