Havas Group has acquired a majority stake in Camp + King, an award-winning independent creative agency that combines brand storytelling with expertise in digital, social and content development. Camp + King complements Havas’ bespoke North America network of larger Havas Villages and boutique shops, including Arnold and Battery.
Camp + King’s acquisition is part of Havas’ global strategic ambition to build a first-class creative network that delivers content through modern platforms. The relationship between Havas and Camp + King goes back to 2008, when Jamie King was president of EURO RSCG Chicago (now Havas Chicago) until 2010. King and Roger Camp then launched Camp + King in 2011, with a minority investment from Havas. Using Havas’ resources, the agency developed its first campaign for Old Navy. Camp + King has grown significantly in nearly a decade, with over 50% of its revenue coming from its digital and social work. The agency also has an in-house content lab with capabilities in animation and digital design, as well as video production and editorial.
Camp + King works with a variety of global brands including Energizer, RE/MAX, Papa John’s, Jackson Hewitt and prAna. Numerous agency campaigns have received coveted industry awards from Cannes Lions, The One Show, The Andy Awards, The Webby Awards and The Clio Awards. Camp + King maintains an inclusive culture–25% of the agency is comprised of minorities and 50% is comprised of women.
King will remain CEO and Camp CCO of Camp + King, leading a team of 60 across the offices in Chicago and San Francisco. The agency plans to expand its Chicago offering and adapt the Havas Village model in San Francisco, eventually bringing creative and media capabilities under one roof.
Havas’ Stephanie Nerlich, executive managing partner, North America, commented, “At Havas, we believe competitive advantage is multiplied by gaining an unfair share of talent. That’s exactly what we get from Camp + King, which brings the agility of a boutique shop with the output of a big agency. And with leaders like Jamie and Roger, we’re continuing to build out our constellation of stars. We couldn’t be more excited to grow our partnership with them and, in parallel, help fuel their ambitions for the future.”
Camp + King CEO and co-founder King said, “Havas has been a part of Camp + King since the beginning. We turn 10 in 2021; and on the eve of that milestone, Roger and I sat down with Havas to discuss our next phase of growth. Their interest in fueling independent creativity and including us as an asset to expand, differentiate and power their portfolio is what excited us. We are looking forward to the evolution of our partnership and doing even greater things together.”
Review: Director John Crowley’s “We Live In Time”
It's not hard to spend a few hours watching Florence Pugh and Andrew Garfield fall and be in love. In "We Live In Time," filmmaker John Crowley puts the audience up close and personal with this photogenic British couple through the highs and lows of a relationships in their 30s.
Everyone starts to think about the idea of time, and not having enough of it to do everything they want, at some point. But it seems to hit a lot of us very acutely in that tricky, lovely third decade. There's that cruel biological clock, of course, but also careers and homes and families getting older. Throw a cancer diagnosis in there and that timer gets ever more aggressive.
While we, and Tobias (Garfield) and Almut (Pugh), do indeed live in time, as we're constantly reminded in big and small ways — clocks and stopwatches are ever-present, literally and metaphorically — the movie hovers above it. The storytelling jumps back and forth through time like a scattershot memory as we piece together these lives that intersect in an elaborate, mystical and darkly comedic way: Almut runs into Tobias with her car. Their first chat is in a hospital hallway, with those glaring fluorescent lights and him bruised and cut all over. But he's so struck by this beautiful woman in front of him, he barely seems to care.
I suppose this could be considered a Lubitschian "meet-cute" even if it knowingly pushes the boundaries of our understanding of that romance trope. Before the hit, Tobias was in a hotel, attempting to sign divorce papers and his pens were out of ink and pencils kept breaking. In a fit of near-mania he leaves, wearing only his bathrobe, to go to a corner store and buy more. Walking back, he drops something in the street and bang: A new relationship is born. It's the... Read More