It's been almost three years since the pandemic started, and the economy is still on uncertain ground. Several major brands chose new agency partners this year to help them navigate inflation and a potential recession, but their strategies in doing so varied drastically. Some decided they needed a change of scenery while others headed back to the relationships they knew well. Here are 13 of the most significant account shifts of the year.

Nike splits $1 billion

Nike’s global media review ended in July with most of its account being split between independent agency PMG and Interpublic Group of Cos.' Initiative. The account, which covers the Nike and Jordan brands in all major markets, is estimated to be worth $1 billion and was a significant loss for WPP’s Mindshare and Stagwell-owned Assembly, which handled a bulk of Nike’s business outside the U.S. The move further consolidated more of Nike’s business under Initiative, which won Converse’s global media account in 2018. 

Anheuser-Busch InBev hires Publicis

One of the biggest account moves of the year was Anheuser-Busch InBev’s incumbent-only global media review that saw Publicis Groupe take home the top prize. Capitalizing on its Epsilon unit’s win as data agency of record in the U.S. and global data partner in February 2021, Publicis took the account in the U.S., Mexico, Central America, South America, Europe and Asia. Dentsu retained the business in Canada and Africa. Ad Age estimated the client's global media account—which includes brands such as Budweiser and Stella Artois globally, as well as Corona outside the U.S.—in excess of $5 billion in 2021.

Bud Light picks Anomaly

While parent company AB InBev went with Publicis for media, brand Bud Light hired Anomaly as its creative agency of record for its beer account. As part of the same review, which began in June, The Martin Agency won line extensions including Bud Light Seltzer and Bud Light Next. Anomaly is no stranger to the Budweiser brand, having served for years as its lead agency both in the U.S. and globally, but the company took a more rostered approach in recent years in the U.S. and Wieden+Kennedy had taken over much of Budweiser globally since 2015.

Wieden+Kennedy takes Ford 

In the fall, Wieden+Kennedy solidified its work with Ford Motor Co. when it took over lead global creative and brand strategy duties from BBDO. Wieden+Kennedy had been steadily gaining ground with the automaker since it was added to the client roster in 2018, handling high-priority advertising in the U.S. until it was quietly promoted to lead U.S. agency in 2020. Some of the agency’s notable work for Ford included installing Bryan Cranston as a spokesman in late 2018 and leading marketing for the new F-150 Lightning EV.

KFC opts for MullenLowe

While Wieden+Kennedy won Ford, it lost KFC. The fried chicken chain chose MullenLowe as its U.S. creative agency of record after a hotly contested review that was believed to include New York-based Fig, Johannes Leonardo, FCB and Arnold. The win came just a month after KFC debuted its new plant-based “Beyond Fried Chicken." The U.S. remains a crucial piece of KFC’s overall business, accounting for 18% of KFC’s sales in 2020. 

Planet Fitness boomerangs to Barkley

Planet Fitness opted for the familiar over the summer when it returned to Barkley after less than a year of working with a bespoke unit within Publicis Groupe, which created a Super Bowl spot for the brand featuring Lindsay Lohan. The decision to reappoint Barkley as the fitness company’s AOR was the right one moving forward, said McCall Gosselin, senior VP of communications. “We have a long-standing relationship with the Barkley team and are confident in their proven track record and ability to continue to elevate the Planet Fitness brand,” she told Ad Age.

Audible consolidates under Wavemaker 

Trying to compete in the audio landscape against rivals such as Spotify, Audible picked Wavemaker to lead its $500 million global paid media strategy this year. The decision consolidated the Amazon-owned podcasting platform’s media dollars, which had previously been spent across a range of agency partners, including Publicis’ Spark Foundry, which handled spending in the U.S. Wavemaker global CEO Toby Jenner said the agency planned on using data and technology to guide Audible’s paid media strategy, suggesting a focus on programmatic advertising online. 

Nationwide chooses Essence

Nationwide was lured away from IPG’s Universal McCann in June, choosing GroupM’s Essence for its media agency of record. Essence’s parent company WPP created “Team Nationwide,” which continued the insurer’s creative work with Ogilvy and unified its media, tech and creative work under one umbrella. The account will be further integrated in 2023 when Essence merges with MediaCom to form EssenceMediacom. 

Jim Beam heads back to Leo Burnett

Another boomerang came in September when Jim Beam took its global creative account back to Leo Burnett after Adam&Eve DDB took over in 2018. Veronique Mura, global brand VP for Jim Beam, told Ad Age that the brand was looking for an agency partner to “redefine what Jim Beam is all about” to appeal to a new generation of bourbon drinkers. The move helped the Publicis Groupe agency gain momentum with Beam Suntory, which already worked with Knob Creek and Basil Hayden and had recently won Legent. Leo Burnett last worked with Jim Beam in 2016.

Pernod Ricard picks Publicis

Looking to invest more in automated marketing, Pernod Ricard hired Publicis Groupe as its U.S. media agency in October. The holding company formed a bespoke unit called Publicis Santé for the account, which resides inside its Performics performance marketing division. Owner of Jameson, Absolut and other alcohol brands, Pernod Ricard’s goal was investing in so-called dynamic creative optimization, which is the practice of personalizing advertising in real time using data on the audience and environments in which ads are served. Wavemaker, part of WPP’s GroupM, had held the account since late 2020.

Uber takes creative to Johannes Leonardo

Faced with the looming challenge of rising inflation and gas prices, Uber named Johannes Leonardo as its lead creative agency in April. In the past, Uber has worked with a smattering of agencies for its brands. Mother continues to work on its Postmates and Uber One brands, and Special Group has helped Uber Eats launch popular Super Bowl campaigns. It was a significant win for New York-based JL, which made several executive moves in 2021, including bringing on Julia Neumann as chief creative officer as the agency’s founders Jan Jacobs and Leo Premutico stepped into creative chairmen roles.

Allstate chooses Wieden+Kennedy, Portland

Allstate rounded out the year by choosing to be in new hands in 2023, opting for Wieden+Kennedy, Portland to lead its creative account. Wieden replaced Droga5, which had led creative at the Chicago area-based insurer since 2020. Allstate had distanced itself from Droga in the last year with the reintroduction of its mischievous Mayhem character to its advertising mix—work that was created wholly in-house. Wieden is walking into a potential uphill battle to connect to consumers as Allstate said it was raising its insurance prices amid inflation, and Gen Z customers remain unconvinced about the need for insurance. 

L'Oréal gives media to OMG

Omnicom Media Group got an early holiday present when L'Oréal awarded it $1 billion in business in mid-December, naming the shop its U.S. media agency of record. The U.S. account was formerly handled by Wavemaker, which previously expanded its relationship with L'Oréal—whose brands include Maybelline, Garnier, CeraVe and its namesake L'Oréal—by adding 25 markets globally in August 2021. OMG will create a bespoke solution to service the account.