Despite a spy’s claim that Tribal DDB Dallas is being swallowed up whole by longtime agency partner and fellow Texan shop TracyLocke, sources familiar with the matter tell us that this is not the case. What we’ve been told is that staffers at Tribal Dallas are reporting directly to TracyLocke president/CEO, Beth Ann Kaminkow, who in turn is reporting up through DDB corporate.

One of the pair’s biggest joint accounts is Pepsi, which both parties are working on in areas where it serves the best interest of the brand’s business including shopper, food service and promotion activation through digital, mobile and social tools and platforms. The Tribal DDB Dallas name/brand remains intact, the agency is still full-service and it’s operating as a standalone as it makes sense for serving various clients. TracyLocke meanwhile is not “cannibalizing” business from other DDB operations, but is instead utilizing Tribal DDB and other Omnicom digital agencies for core strengths including app development. After the dust settled, we’ve been told that there were no major layoffs, save for a GM and account lead. In addition, TracyLocke is in the process of bringing in a new CTO soon.