Indie ad agency Erich & Kallman has made a series of hires at its full-service office in Austin.
Opened earlier this year, the office was created to better serve the agency’s client Gulf States Toyota and other clients in the region, while continuing to expand Erich & Kallman’s presence in the Southwest.
The new appointments are led by noted industry players Kristi Kirkeide Boutiette, who joins as director of brands; Fearghal Odea, who steps in as executive producer; and David Castellanos, who joins as creative director.
“We’re so happy with the quality of people we were able to bring into the agency, thanks to our Austin office and some new business wins,” said Steve Erich, president and co-founder, Erich & Kallman, “It’s added some great, senior leadership to the agency with folks like Kristi, David and Fearghal, as well as some fantastic creative and strategic talent.”
Boutiette will be brand director For Gulf States Toyota. Prior to her new role, she contracted with Erich & Kallman for the last two years on clients including iRobot, Dole and Meineke. Before Erich & Kallman, she spent 19 years at Crispin Porter + Bogusky, running the Fruit of the Loom account after having played an instrumental role in Domino’s iconic “Pizza Turnaround.” She has also worked with IKEA, Burger King, Miller Lite, Mondolez and Molson.
Odea will head up production, after recently working on Erich & Kallman’s exciting Reese’s Caramel Big Cup commercial for the Super Bowl on behalf of The Hershey Company. He has more than 15 years of experience on the agency side, producing commercials, branded films, websites and digital content for brands like NBA2K, Mitsubishi, ESPN, Pepsi, Ralph Lauren, Calvin Klein, Disney and more.
Castellanos will oversee all creative efforts for Gulf States Toyota, bringing with him nearly 20 years of experience in the U.S. and Mexico. He comes to Erich & Kallman from Saatchi & Saatchi, where he served as SVP group creative director. Prior to that, he spent nearly three years at Media.Monks as VP group creative director and before that, he led DDB’s Mexico office in Mexico City as chief creative officer. He has received over 200 accolades from major competitions including Cannes Lions and D&AD Pencils.
Also joining the team are copywriter Daphne Lefran; associate creative director Diego Zelaya; account director Madison Rich; director of partnerships Bill Brown; associate strategy director Marisol Moran; account supervisor Katie Martin; account manager Renata Nava; sr. project manager Carlton Wilcoxson; production artist Marcus Davis; account manager Catherine MacLennan; and new business supervisor Kate Hogan.
Erich & Kallman maintains offices in San Francisco and Austin.
