BBDO wins Starbucks creative account

BBDO may have lost Pepsi in the United States market but has not lost the fizz as it bounces back with a creative account for Starbucks.

The Omnicom Group's BBDO office in New York announced this in an official statement.

The Seattle-based international coffee chain had an advertising spend of more than $60 million (Dh220.38m) last year, while Pepsi spent $90m in the previous year, according to figures released by Nielsen Monitor-Plus.

BBDO has been working on the caffeine beverage for some time with some ad-hoc promotions and its last campaign marking the US elections was the deciding factor. Starbucks' high-profile Election Day campaign saw the chain give away a 12-ounce free cup of coffee to those who voted.

BBDO in New York succeeds Wieden+Kennedy. The agency did not defend the account.

In official statements forwarded to Emirates Business, Terry Davenport, Starbucks' Chief Marketing Officer, attributed this achievement to the innovative approach of BBDO.

He said: "BBDO's original idea helped generate enormous attention for the brand, drive traffic to our stores, and remind everyone that the connection between Starbucks and its customers is bigger than coffee."

David Lubars, the agency's Chairman and CCO of North American operations, said in an official communiqué: "Starbucks has some amazing, extraordinary stories to tell. And we can't wait to help them achieve something historical."

Despite having a leading status in the hot beverage segment, Starbucks has struggled of late and has recorded less-than-expected quarterly results and in fact had to close more than 600 stores in the US alone.

Starbucks and Wieden+ Kennedy parted in September after four years when the client began soliciting new ideas from roaster shops and Wieden chose to "opt out of the process", Davenport said at the time.