The mood at Party City was far from festive Friday, as CNN reported that the retailer will abruptly shut down its stores and let all employees go at the end of the day, ending a run of nearly 40 years. Party City specialized in items such as balloons, Halloween costumes, and party goods, and CNN...
Bill Belichick and Tom Brady are reuniting for a Super Bowl, and Michael Strahan's presence won't spoil it, for once. Strahan's SMAC Entertainment is teaming up with Fox Sports Films, BZ Entertainment and NFL Films on a pre-Super Bowl special, "The Madden Cruiser: A Bayou Adventure With Bill Belichick." Airing at 12pm ET ahead of...
The kids aren't just hangry in a new campaign for Wonderful Halos, they're downright vengeful and borderline homicidal. That's because their parents polished off all the sweet-as-candy mandarin oranges in the house, leaving them with low blood sugar and lax supervision. Two hilariously dark ads--from The Wonderful Agency, the company's in-house creative division--set up a...
Everybody wants in on the $60 billion that retail media is projected to make in 2025, according to Emarketer. For many agencies, retailers, and adtech firms, that means striking deals with other players to reach new audiences and data about what people buy. As we close out 2024, ADWEEK asked three execs and industry analysts...
Omnicom Media Group (OMG) is bringing on PHD exec Katie Klein as chief investment officer, it shared with ADWEEK. Klein previously held the same role at subsidiary PHD USA. In her three years there, she built an integrated investment arm serving clients including Burger King, Delta Airlines, Diageo, Priceline, Uber, and Volkswagen Group. Prior to...
A TikTok ban appears imminent, and members of TikTok's thriving communities, like #BookTok, #PerfumeTok, and #MovieTok, will need to find new platforms to connect. BookTok is not just a thriving community, but a space where people can build careers. For example, Eli Rallo is a published author who gained popularity on TikTok along with creator...
The data unit Epsilon has emerged as one of Publicis Groupe's biggest weapons of its recent success, helping its stock soar nearly 70% since the beginning of 2023. "Epsilon and Publicis Media operation are now totally intertwined and at the heart of our connected media ecosystem," CEO Arthur Sadoun told investors in its Q3 earnings...
Happy Friday to all who celebrate. In this week's edition of stories we didn't post for one reason or another, we see the usual churn of local journalists, leaving me to ask, is it me or is everyone retiring these days and one union pickets a Michigan station. Let us begin: Revolving Door: Reporter-anchor Tajma...
Volvo is shaking up its media agency roster for the first time in 25 years. IPG Mediabrands' Initiative has won Volvo's global media review, ADWEEK has learned. The account spans all regions outside of China, with key markets including the U.S., U.K., Germany, Sweden, Japan, Australia, Korea. Work will begin in 2025 after a brief...
Pro tip for Ronny Chieng fans--if you meet him in person, don't say that you only get your news from The Daily Show... even if that happens to be true. "I wouldn't like that," the senior correspondent for Comedy Central's longtime satirical newscast tells TVNewser when asked how he'd feel about being someone's sole news...
Let the games begin! When Squid Game returns to Netflix on Dec. 26, its tentacles are guaranteed to grasp hold of the global pop culture conversation. A new campaign from the streamer and WhatsApp hopes to make the messaging platform the forum of choice for the South Korean show's international fanbase. The campaign includes two...
2024 saw some major chief marketing officer (CMO) moves. While brands including Starbucks and The Knot Worldwide promoted former marketers to the chief executive officer (CEO) office, others like Gap and Adobe finally filled their vacant CMO positions. Other advertisers such as Dove and Major League Baseball (MLB) saw long-time marketing bosses exit, where OpenAI...
Helene Dick has joined independent creative agency Special US as head of strategy, the agency shared with ADWEEK. She will report to Special Group CEO Kelsey Hodgkin. Dick is a seasoned agency executive, having spent more than two years prior at TBWA\Media Arts Lab as executive director of strategy for the Apple account, where she...
In 2024, brands leaned into creators that had unique perspectives to reach specific demographics. But brands also need to stay ahead of the curve in finding the next big creators to work with. The next wave of creators are appealing to Gen Z audiences with niche content about topics like beauty, politics, and education. ADWEEK...
The year is ending, so it's time to go back down the witches' road and bring you the can't-miss TV of 2024. ADWEEK's "best of" TV and streaming list is a little different from others. Though plenty of lists will include the usual prestige players, we're changing things up and bringing you the shows from...
WSET anchor Mark Spain has died, just three weeks after being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. He was 64. "Hello sunshines! It is with a heavy heart that I share the passing of my loving husband Mark. Our family along with the city of Lynchburg lost a man of hope, someone who loves his city and...
Major League Baseball's winter meetings have been over for a week, but the organization saved one of its biggest swings for today--promoting Uzma Rawn Dowler to its new chief marketing officer. A 10-year MLB veteran, Rawn begins her new role in January and will report to Noah Garden, MLB's deputy commissioner of business and media....
Omnicom's acquisition of IPG may have been the biggest agency news of the year, but it wasn't the only move in the sector this month. We've gathered up some of the bigger moves made in the last couple of weeks. Alma Alma has appointed Jorge Murillo as co-chief creative officer, to help to steer the...
Staying in Place: NewsNation's primetime anchor Chris Cuomo has agreed to a multi-year contract extension with the network. Cuomo joined NewsNation in 2020, and his eponymous 8 p.m. show is the network's top-rated program. "Chris is a one-of-a-kind talent whose unrivaled analysis and commentary has helped grow the audience at NewsNation and strengthen our brand,"...
In the long list of cherished holiday traditions, few are as enduring as parents taking their kids to see Santa at the local mall or retail store. Every year, over 18 million children call on Santa, according to the cultural blog Atkins Bookshelf, and 70% of malls and shopping centers employ one, as per NationalSanta.com....
