Nothing fake for Fido. San Diego-based Petco is not pussyfooting around with its new advertising campaign launched last month that’s part of the chain’s new mission to become the first major pet food retailer to remove artificial ingredients from pet food.
“Cleaning House,” the name of Petco’s new ad campaign, is the first from Anomaly, a global marketing firm Petco tapped as its creative agency of record in December.
In a 60-second spot now showing on local TV, cats and dogs rid a Petco store of canned vulgarities such as “sulfite snackers” and “benzoic acid biscuits,” which are replaced with all natural goodies, all performed to a catchy tune, “Let’s Start a Riot.”
The company said the new campaign highlights the change happening at Petco and directly calls on pet owners to reconsider what they feed their pets by offering a gritty reminder: If it doesn’t meet our new standards, you won’t soon find it on Petco shelves.
Pet food makes up more than 40 percent of the $72.1 billion pet product industry, according to the American Pet Products Association, and Petco has been under rising pressure from startups offering pet owners high-end services and organic food.
Late last year, Petco announced it would eliminate artificial colors, flavors and preservatives from its dog and cat food by May 1 of this year. Later this spring, Petco and its partner, Irvine-based JustFoodForDogs, are planning to open a kitchen at its flagship store in New York where 2,000 pounds of fresh pet food will be available every day.
“Last year, we put the entire pet industry on notice by introducing new standards for nutrition because we firmly believe it’s the right thing to do for pets,” said Tariq Hassan, Petco chief marketing officer. “This campaign breathes life into that decision and the journey that lies ahead for Petco. It’s a departure from anything we’ve done before, and a direct reflection of our ongoing brand transformation to meet the evolving demands of pet parents.”
The national campaign — which includes TV, online video, display, paid social, paid search, digital content and influencer components — is expected to run throughout 2019.
“This bold gesture by Petco is part of an even greater mission to transform the brand and the category,” said Eric Segal, chief creative officer at Anomaly. “This meant we needed to match their ambition with a campaign that looked and sounded like nothing else out there, filled with joy and momentum to make you undeniably feel the seismic shift coming and entice you to come along for the ride.”
Petco said media strategy is being handled by Horizon Media, its media agency of record.
Grandesign of San Diego, OOH Specialists, Acquired by UK’s Talon
Grandesign, a San Diego-headquartered marketing agency specializing in out-of-home (OOH) advertising, has been acquired by Talon, one of the United Kingdom’s largest independent OOH marketing firms. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Grandesign’s six offices in San Diego, Denver, St. Louis, Los Angeles and Atlanta will be rebranded as Talon, a statement said. Grandesign, considered as one of the largest independent OOH agencies in the U.S., has counted Comic-Con, Fandom, Adult Swim, Warner Bros, Blizzard, Amazon, McDonald’s, Zappos as clients.
The acquisition comes a year after Talon opened its first U.S. office in New York. Talon handles all of Omnicom Media Group’s displays in the U.K. for such brands as McDonald’s and Google. Industry experts said Talon’s expansion to the West Coast is due to growing interest in OOH, particularly in the Silicon Valley.
Grandesign’s founder and former CEO Aaron Gaeir, who will remain with Talon as chief revenue officer, said, “It was refreshing to find a likeminded company that is driven by cultivating people and building a tempting work environment, but also has best-in-class technology, data, the big shoulders and the executive leadership for continued aggressive growth.
“This is the secret to clear competitive advantages and market dominance and will enable us to reach our goals of becoming the largest and most sophisticated out of home buying service, not only in the U.S. but globally.”
“Aaron and the team have built a great business and culture at Grandesign, which has made the first stage of our integration plan pretty seamless,” said Adrian Skelton, managing partner, Talon. “We are excited about developing the best working practices from both agencies to elevate the quality of work across our U.S. client portfolio, while looking towards growth with a structured new business drive.”
Eric Newnham, Talon’s founder and executive shareholder, said, “This is arguably our most exciting move to date with the U.S. offering real opportunity to embrace our approach that has brought success to date. Data and technology is enabling real differentiation and growth for us globally, and this is part of a wider expansion program that is just beginning.”
According to the Out of Home Advertising Association of America, OOH marketing revenue in the U.S. rose to $7.7 billion in 2017, with top spenders including McDonald’s, Apple, Geico, American Express, Google, Amazon, Coca-Cola, HBO, Verizon and Chevrolet.
Oster and and Associates Adds PR Specialist
Branding agency Oster and Associates has hired Joel Ellazar as a public relations specialist. Ellazar has worked the past 20 years in various industries, including software technology, consumer goods, medical and government contracts.
Prior to joining Oster, Ellazar worked as marketing director with BNI Building News, a Vista-based publisher of cost estimating and reference books for the construction industry. He also operated his own marketing company serving healthcare and restaurant clients. He also worked for Cosmetic Laser Dermatology, a San Diego medical practice.
Ellazar holds a master’s in business administration with an emphasis in marketing from the Keller Graduate School of Management in San Diego. He also is an alum of Santa Clara University where he graduated with a bachelor’s degree in political science. He is a supporter of the Autism Society of San Diego and enjoys sports, video games and comic books. Founded in 1986, Oster and Associates has clients in retail gardening, agriculture, nonprofit, sports and travel industries.
SAFE Fundraiser Will Support Marketers in Crisis
The San Diego Advertising Fund for Emergencies (SAFE) will host its annual fundraising party from 5 to 8 p.m. Thursday, April 18, at the Karl Strauss Tasting Room and Beer Garden, 5985 Santa Fe St., San Diego. SAFE is a volunteer, 501c3 nonprofit organization providing confidential financial assistance to local advertising and marketing professionals and their families facing a life crisis emergency.
SAFE’s major fundraiser, now in its 17th year, will feature tacos, craft beer, networking, a cornhole tournament and raffle to benefit grant recipients.
The public is invited to attend. Theme of this year’s party is “SAFE & Sound.” Music will be provided by radio station XHTZ-FM Z-90.3. Cost to attend is $25 per person, which includes a first drink and souvenir pint glass (while supplies last). The venue is an indoor-outdoor setting, so dress is casual.
Presenting sponsor is the New Car Dealers Association of San Diego County. Additional sponsors include KUSI-NEWS, Fox 5 San Diego, Local Media San Diego, Cox Media, Clear Channel Outdoor, Creative Media Concepts, Meads Durket, Brand Savants, Entercom, Brown Marketing Strategies, Media Planning & Placement, Kelly Co. and California Bank & Trust.
For tickets and more information, visit SafeSanDiego.org. Since its founding in 2000, SAFE officials said the nonprofit has helped more than 100 people in the advertising and marketing industry with more than $260,000 in grants.
Rick Griffin is a San Diego-based public relations and marketing consultant. His MarketInk column appears weekly on Mondays in Times of San Diego.
