"180 has a storied history of creating work people talk about.
That's absolutely critical to me," said PepsiCo's president of the
global beverages group, Brad Jakeman. Pepsi handed the shop its
first work starring Beyoncé; it has awarded it the brand's
soccer-related fare in World Cup-fevered 2014.
Adidas has been a client for seven years, and Ryan Morlan, its
global director of brand communications, called the agency's
account team "almost equal to our own family members. Not a week
goes by without at least five phone calls."
PepsiCo's Mr. Jakeman concurred. "Sometimes I'll receive a text
in the middle of the night from Chris [Mendola] who had an idea or
is worried maybe the work is not as good as it could be. That shows
we're working with people who care," he said.
Now after years of getting people to talk about its work, 180 is
generating chatter for itself -- a fact that could be somewhat
bittersweet for its early clients.
"While we congratulate 180LA [on being named to Ad Age's Agency
A-List], selfishly we're somewhat saddened they'll no longer remain
our single best-kept secret," said Mr. Morlan, sounding like a
die-hard fan whose favorite indie band has hit the mainstream.