Marketing winners and losers of the week

This week’s marketing winners, losers and newsmakers. Check out the latest Ad Age events and award programs Winners Nomint: The animation company was among the big winners in the Collision Awards, which honors excellence in animation and stop-motion design. Nomint’s “Up in Smoke” ad for the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) won gold in the nonprofit category. The video, released late last year at the COP28 UN Climate Change Conference, depicts a girl confronting a smoke-filled world in an attempt to portray the dangers of fossil fuel. The film is backed by Billie Eilish’s and Finneas’s “When the Party’s Over.” According to the WWF, the effort “employed a unique production process, integrating stop-motion animation with real smoke, and using a full-color 3D printing technique to create over 700 unique sculptures for different poses of the girl.” WNBA: The women’s pro basketball league is poised to sign an 11-year media rights deal worth $2.2 billion, according to The Athletic, which reports that ESPN, NBC and Amazon will all have their own WNBA packages. That would amount to a payday six times greater than its current deal, the publication reported. The momentum behind women’s sports is also extending to soccer—Los Angeles-based NWSL team Angel City FC has a new controlling ownership agreement with Walt Disney CEO Bob Iger and his wife, Willow Bay, dean of the USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism. It values the club at $250 million, making it the most valuable women’s sports team in the world, according to the team. Also read: More on the growth of women’s sports View this post on Instagram A post shared by Angel City FC (@weareangelcity) Agency Review Tracker Stay up to date with the latest account reviews Click here FX: Helped by hit shows “The Bear” and “Shogun,” the cable network landed 93 Emmy nominations, second only to Netflix (107), according to Variety, which notes that HBO and Max (with 91 nominations) failed to reach the top two for the first time in decades. Huge day for Hulu/FX. Disney's streaming platforms had:--The most-nominated drama/former limited series with SHŌGUN (25)--The most-nominated comedy with THE BEAR (23)--The third most-nominated show (and the most for a show that's actually a comedy) with ONLY MURDERS (21)— TVMoJoe (@TVMoJoe) July 17, 2024 Losers Adidas: The company has apologized for “any upset or distress caused” over the release of a remake of its SL 72 shoes, which originally debuted during the 1972 Munich Olympics. Critics, including the StopAntisemitism group, pointed out that the games are known for the murder of 11 Israeli athletes by Palestinian terrorists. Antisemite Bella Hadid was chosen by Adidas as the face for the 1972 Olympic shoe relaunch. The same Olympics in which Jews were butchered by Palestinian terrorists.If the shoes fits @adidas - how on par. pic.twitter.com/2jOVgIRv9s— StopAntisemitism (@StopAntisemites) July 17, 2024 Adidas also drew complaints about its choice to make model Bella Hadid the face of the campaign. She has been a prominent critic of the Israeli government. Adidas, in a statement cited by Front Office Sports, stated that it would revise the remainder of the campaign. Adidas launched a shoe commemorating the 1972 Munich Olympics--the same Olympics where 11 Israeli athletes were murdered by a Palestinian terrorist org. Palestinian model Bella Hadid, publicly anti-Israel, is the face of the campaign.Adidas statement to @FOS and others: pic.twitter.com/diPNG3vaQQ— Amanda Christovich (@achristovichh) July 18, 2024 United Airlines: The airline came under scrutiny this week when NFL Hall of Famer Terrell Davis said he was wrongfully handcuffed and removed from a recent United flight after he lightly tapped a flight attendant’s arm. Davis, who had been traveling with his family, wrote about the incident, calling it “humiliating, disturbing and traumatizing.” He has retained legal counsel. United said it has reached out to Davis to apologize. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Terrell Davis (@therealterrelldavis) Bud Light: The beer’s downfall continues. Bud Light’s year-to-date sales at stores fell 18.6% through July 6, according to NIQ data cited this week by Beer Marketer’s Insights, which notes that the brand lost 1.5 market share points and is now at 7% share in beer, as it was surpassed by Michelob Ultra for the No. 2 spot. While Bud Light has been in decline for years, it plummeted in the wake of its 2023 promotion with transgender creator Dylan Mulvaney which drew conservative backlash. Anheuser-Busch InBev’s stumbling response—which also angered progressives who complained that the brand abandoned Mulvaney—made the situation worse, and the latest data shows the brand still has a lot of work to do. But there is a silver lining for AB InBev: Ultra, which for months was collateral damage of Bud Light’s woes, seems to have recovered, growing 2% and gaining 0.2 share of beer to 7.1% market share, according to Beer Marketer’s. But both Bud Light and Ultra are staring up at Constellation Brands’ Modelo Especial, whose sales surged in the period, gaining 1.1 share points putting it at 9.3% market share, according to Beer Marketer’s. Also read: 6 lessons from the Bud Light fiasco Five Below: The discount retailer announced the exit of CEO Joel Anderson and lowered its second-quarter guidance as it deals with declines in consumer spending. The chain’s stock price fell to its lowest in more than four years. Brand executives blamed a lack of trendy products. This week’s news continues Five Below’s disappointing year; last month, it reported lower-than-expected earnings and blamed a surplus of Squishmallows. Quote of the week “We recognized that the mass marketing of mass messages to masses of people via mass media was a mass mistake.”—Larry Light, former global chief marketing officer of McDonald’s, in a 2020 article in Branding Strategy Insider. Light, who oversaw the creation of the chain’s iconic “I’m lovin’ it” slogan in the early 2000s, died on June 24, according to a New York Times obituary published this week. 40 under 40 entries are open The final deadline for nominations is Aug. 2 Enter here Social post of the week “No time to explain, get in the Orangina” pic.twitter.com/ooLnqztzoB— Gary Brannan (@garybrannan) July 15, 2024 Number of the week $1.5 billion: Cash price EssilorLuxotica paid VF Corp. for the Supreme streetwear brand as the Ray-Ban owner looks to grow its business beyond eyewear. On the move Cracker Barrel announced Sarah Moore as its chief marketing officer. She had been senior VP of marketing at MGM Resorts International. AutoCamp, an outdoor travel brand, hired Bryan Terzi as CMO. He had been group VP of marketing at Sage Hospitality. Zeam Media named actor, musician and author celebrity John Stamos chief innovation officer. Kickstarter promoted Courtney Brown Warren to CMO from VP of brand marketing. General Mills hired Asheesh Saksena as chief strategy growth officer, effective Aug. 26. He had been chief growth officer at Gap Inc. 40 under 40 entries are open The final deadline for nominations is Aug. 2 Enter here

Marketing winners and losers of the week

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