McCann Worldgroup has appointed Belinda Leworthy to the role of president, North America, for Commonwealth//McCann, the agency network’s global, dedicated business unit for Chevrolet.
Leworthy joins McCann Worldgroup from WPP, where she served as global client leader on Dell Technologies, overseeing an expansive global relationship with client ambitions spanning from consumers to the enterprise. WPP’s multi-agency ecosystem provides integrated services across brand, advertising, media, PR/comms, and technology.
Leworthy will assume all operational and management responsibilities of McCann Worldgroup’s Chevrolet business in North America (U.S. and Canada), including oversight of Chevrolet advertising, CRM, promotional, digital marketing, production, owned platforms and other marketing communications assignments handled by Worldgroup units in North America. She will report directly to Grant Theron, CEO for Commonwealth//McCann.
Theron said, “Belinda brings an enormous skill set to her role and she is the ideal leader to work with us to enhance the Chevrolet brand and expand the business across the world.”
Prior to WPP, Leworthy was president of the NA South Central region for Wunderman Thompson, where she managed the Austin and Memphis offices, with responsibility for delivering success at scale for a vibrant, fast-growing region, building out local capabilities, and continuing to win and onboard new clients. She also headed up the WT Global Team for Dell, leading teams in Europe, Asia and Latin America.
“Belinda has a very deep understanding of the agency-client relationship, and she has experience on both sides of that equation,” added Theron. “Chevrolet is balancing an exciting all-electric future with strong consumer demand for ICE vehicles. Belinda’s background brings retailer and channel planning expertise to help Chevrolet realize the short and long-term opportunities.”
Leworthy has more than 25 years of experience in the marketing and advertising industry. She had led local, regional and global client accounts at agencies in Australia and North America, managed business and worldwide operations, and also spent time client-side in marketing and agency management roles.
The appointment of Leworthy comes at a time of great positive momentum for the work out of Commonwealth//McCann in North America, including the “Walter The Cat” spot for the Chevrolet Silverado, and the TV commercial “Holiday Ride,” an emotional tribute to a family’s 1966 Chevrolet Impala. The agency also released “New Generation,” a TV spot that ran during the 2022 Super Bowl that reunited Meadow and A.J. Soprano in a shot-by-shot recreation of the iconic opening sequence of HBO’s The Sopranos. The TV spot introduced the all new, all-electric Chevrolet Silverado and was named the most popular and creative work of the Big Game by multiple media outlets, including Good Morning America.
Eleanor Adds Director Candice Vernon To Its Roster For Spots and Branded Content
Director Candice Vernon has joined production house Eleanor for U.S. representation spanning commercials and branded content. She has already wrapped several jobs at Eleanor, which waited to announce her until they had a body of work together.
Via Eleanor, Vernon made history as the first Black director on a Febreze commercial. The “Small Spaces” campaign marks a major departure from Febreze’s typical blue-and-white world. The home of the “Revolving Door” commercial is a beautiful array of bold sunset hues, African prints, and African art.
Vernon said, “I asked myself, what feels right to me? What feels new? I wanted to bring an essence of not just Black Americans but the full diaspora. I wanted to make a statement that we’re not a monolith.”
Following the success of the “Small Spaces” campaign, Febreze brought Vernon back for a comedy-infused trifecta exploring the hilarious situations that call for an air freshening hero.
Febreze Brand VP Angelica Matthews said, “About two years ago, we realized the consumers that were the most loyal to Febreze were the African American consumers. And the more we learned, the more we realized the richness that we were really missing. So we said we have to go beyond just Black casting, we need to get Black directors that truly understand the culture that truly understand how to bring authentic performances out on screen. We really looked around the industry and noticed there’s actually a shortage of African American directors who have experience doing commercials. When we all saw Candice’s reel, we could all tell the passion for the craft, passion for really trying to help us from where we are to where we’re trying to go.”
Vernon brings a unique lens to... Read More