Leo Burnett

For the last 10 days, we’ve received multiple tips that Leo Burnett won the Chobani yogurt business, which was previously handled by NYC-based, IPG-owned Gotham. And though the agency is not ready to confirm anything as of now (see quote in headline), AdAge seems to have it on lock (yeah, we know clients steer towards them first anyways). Here’s a screenshot of one rather succinct tip below as evidence:

Well, there’s a legitimate reason why Deutsch LA wasn’t responding to us in regards to the handover of the Esurance biz as they weren’t actually passed the baton. Leo Burnett has become the brand’s new AOR after beating out Deutsch, Venables Bell & Partners, Goodby and incumbent Duncan/Channon. Guess it makes more sense considering that Leo has already been serving as  the agency for Esurance’s parent, Allstate. In a statement, Esurance CMO John Swigart says, “The decision was a difficult one for us, since all five agencies presented amazing work. Ultimately, we felt that Leo Burnett delivered the best option for continuing the development of Esurance’s brand voice in a crowded industry.”

Leo Burnett has been named agency of record for Cincinnati-based financial services company Fifth Third Bancorp, which chose the veteran Chicago-based operation without conducting a review. The Fifth Third AOR duties had previously been handled by Olson, which originally won the account in late 2007. Terms of the contract weren’t disclosed but as is the norm with AORs, Leo will be responsible for FTB’s advertising, digital and marketing communications services.

In a statement, Fifth Third’s SVP/CMO Larry Magnesen says of Leo Burnett, “They have a proven track record of developing breakthrough communication strategies to articulate clear value and differentiation, and most important, to engage the customer.”

With another Cannes International Advertising Festival on the way comes Leo Burnett’s 24th annual Lions predictions, consisting of a reel that includes 40 campaigns from around the world that the agency predicts are the top contenders to take home Lions this year. 2010′s predictions were pretty dead-on, with the 40 taking home 90 Lions including 12 of the 15 Grand Prix honors.

So, how did the agency come to its conclusion that W+K’s Old Spice campaign would win big on the French Riviera? As their press release states, “It was a tedious process for sure: a team led by Leo Burnett Worldwide CCO Mark Tutssel viewed thousands of campaigns, monitored global and local award shows and followed the general industry buzz to select the work for this year’s collection.” That does sound pretty tedious and time consuming, doesn’t it?

You can view the entire list as well as an interactive PDF version on Leo Burnett’s blog, but may we direct your attention to number 29, Allstate’s “Mayhem,” which is credited to “Leo Burnet.” We’re obviously not ones to talk but you gotta love the irony.

Update: Looks like they fixed the typo already. A+ for reaction time, guys.

Now that it’s making some inroads in Brazil, Publicis Groupe sets its eyes on enhancing its digital capabilities with the acquisition of Holler, a London-based shop that specializes in digital content and social media.

As a result of the purchase, Holler will now be affixed to the Leo Burnett Group in the U.K and will increase the latter’s number of digital specialists across the pond from 35 to 70. Holler, which counts clients including Channel 4 (which includes E4 and the original Skins) and Red Bull, will continue to be led by James Kirkham, Will Pyne and Simon Hankin, who hold the titles of managing partner, ECD and joint managing partner, respectively. According to the announce, digital accounts for 28 percent of Publicis Groupe’s revenue, but the holding company hopes to increase that number to 35 percent within the next three years.

Once dubbed “Perth’s most awarded expat creative” by Campaign Brief, Reed Collins is “expat” no more as he’s heading back home to Australia to take on a “big creative leadership job” according to Leo Burnett Chicago, where Collins has spent the last several years as SVP/ECD.

Prior to joining Leo, Collins (right) basically crisscrossed the globe, working at agencies on four continents including Mojo & Partners in Sydney, TBWA\Hunt Lascaris in Johannesburg, Lowe Howard-Spink in London and the now-defunct Cliff Freeman & Partners in NYC. According to the 2001 Gunn Report, Collins’ Fox Sports TV campaign was the most-awarded worldwide that year.

Collins isn’t the only one leaving Leo Burnett as of late as John Carstens, who’d served as global creative lead on Blackberry during the course of 2010, is headed over to SapientNitro. Meanwhile, John Greene, who’s spent over three years at the agency as SVP/group planning director, is joining up with Translation. But as far as the tips telling us that Leo CDs Ryan Wagman (ex-CPB) and Nuno Ferrera are leaving for gigs at Groupon, the agency tells us that they “aren’t going anywhere.”

Update: Collins is going to be the national CCO of the Campaign Palace Australia starting in February.

A couple of months ago, Leo Burnett CEO Tom Bernadin and CCO Mark Tutssel collaborated on a book outlining the agency’s philosophy. Titled HumanKind, we gave away five books to lucky AgencySpy readers (which, due to a shipping delay, should be arriving later this week–our apologies for the delay).

Not content with just a book to outline the shop’s creative process, Leo Burnett is turning 2011 into the year of HumanKind with an all new online monthly digest and the above video compiling what looks to be the agency’s entire reel. A second video, features a talk with Tutssel who emphasizes that people should be at the center of advertisers’ (if that occupation still applies) focus. Tutssel explains the difference between “acts” and ads, saying that people (surprise) are the only ones who can create iconic brands.

The HumanKind online digest also features links to a video discussing the importance of mobile QR codes, a report from the El Ojo festival, and a re-imagination of the retail stores. I guess we can consider HumanKind Leo Burnett’s own form of re-branding, which for what some commenters consider to be a dinosaur agency isn’t the worst idea we’ve heard.

Awards season is coming sooner than we think and here’s Leo Burnett’s entry dubbed “Montage Me.” The agency teamed up with Boulder’s beloved Victors & Spoils and created this digital ditty, one of 1,000 call for entries submitted to the latter firm’s ANDYs challenge.

If you’re feeling ironic, clap your hands and submit a headshot or three to this Facebook-based effort, which lets your mug play a part in an 80′s music video. So far, only one of the three videos is available to participate in, but “Montage” won the hearts of V&S’s Evan Fry as well as ANDYs co-chairs Ty Montague and Michael Lebowitz. Along with V&S and Leo’s input, the project also was aided by the latter agency’s marketing services unit, Arc Worldwide, Tool of North America, Optimus and Comma.

In a somewhat humble statement regarding the “Squirrel Fight” call for entries competition, Fry says, “The idea to open up to the world the call for entries idea was a great one, and unfortunately I can’t take credit for that. It was all Ty and Michael and the ANDYs. It was crazy how many ideas came in. Probably because the award was so great – not only would your idea be produced as the official call for entries idea, but you’d also win the last coveted spot on the 2011 ANDYs jury alongside the biggest players in the industry. I just hope the winner doesn’t say anything stupid to Goodby or Keller.”

The “Montage Me” campaign runs through Jan. 7, which is the work submission deadline for the ANDYs itself.

Leo Burnett UK’s search is over as the agency’s finally found themselves an ECD and he goes by the name of  Justin Tindall, says Campaign. He’ll be replacing Jonathan Burley who blew a few minds by leaving back in April to take an ECD role at CHI & Partners.

Tindall built his reputation at DDB London, where he was the head of art and worked alongside creative partner Adam Tucker. For the past Four years,  Tindall has been at The Red Brick Road as a partner with a stake in the agency.

Tindall says in a statement, “This is one of the biggest creative jobs in the country and a chance to work on a fantastic portfolio of clients. The breadth and scale of Leo Burnett’s creative ambition is matched entirely by my own.”
It’s still a little up in the air when Tindall will start at Burnett or what will happen to his stake in The Red Brick Road.

So, Leo Burnett CEO Tom Bernadin and CCO Mark Tutssel collaborated on a new book dubbed HumanKind, which discusses the agency’s four-word philosophy: People, Purpose, Participation and Populism. Hey, if Bogusky and Porter can write a diet book, why can’t a tome written about the ad industry itself be penned by Bernadin, who says in a statement, “This book is not about advertising, brand propositions or selling products. It’s about people – what engages them, moves them and inspires them to act a certain way, and ultimately enriches their lives.”

Anyhow, we’re giving away five copies of the book so if you’re game, please email yours truly at agencyspy at gmail dot com with the year Bernadin was named CEO at Leo. First five get the prize. Game on.

Update: And like that, we’re out! Thanks to all those who replied.