R/GA, headquartered in N.Y., has extended its European reach, opening an office in Stockholm under the aegis of managing director Anders Erlandsson and executive creative director Kay Höök. The Swedish foothold complements R/GA’s operation in London.
Erlandsson and Höök join R/GA from Digitas Sweden. Erlandsson managed a number of Digitas’ key accounts, developed and implemented corporate vision and strategy, and served as a member of the executive management group. Prior to Digitas Sweden, Erlandsson was a partner and the CEO for Svensson Advertising Agency and was CEO and founding partner of Ondatje Advertising Agency. Throughout his career, Erlandsson has been the strategic lead on a number of high-profile brands such as Canon, Nike, and Absolut. During his time working on Absolut, he led the retail strategy for the “In an Absolut World” campaign, which gained widespread recognition within the industry and internally at Absolut.
Höök was instrumental in growing Digitas Sweden’s profile and portfolio in the region. With over 15 years of experience in both the online and offline advertising industry, Höök has such accomplishments as between 2004 and 2010 taking the little-known Scholz & Friends Stockholm from a small start-up to a top-10 creative agency in Sweden. Along the way, Höök won many international and domestic creative awards for numerous Nike campaigns, including the Nike “RUN” interactive campaign, Nike Pro’s “It’s All about Breathing,” and the Nike Golf “Redefine Range” campaign.
At R/GA, Höök will be responsible for shaping the agency’s creative vision and Erlandsson will oversee the overall management. Both report to Bob Greenberg, chairman, CEO, and global chief creative officer.
“What makes the opening of R/GA Stockholm particularly exciting is that this is not a move driven by a specific client requirement, but a decision born solely out of our own agency’s global growth strategy,” said Bob Greenberg, chairman, CEO, and global chief creative officer. “We now have extensive experience opening successful offices, this being our ninth one. With Stockholm’s proximity to London, and R/GA London’s recent growth, I expect the Swedish office to flourish. Since Sweden has long been a hotbed of innovation and creativity in the digital space, our move here gives R/GA an unrivalled opportunity to work with some of the most talented people in the industry, clearly demonstrated by the hires of Anders and Kay.”
Plans call for the staff of R/GA Stockholm to grow to 25 by 2012.
Curatorial Committee Roster Is Set For The 2025 AICP Post Awards
The AICP has set the full roster for the Curatorial Committee for the 2025 AICP Post Awards. The group, representing experts from the full gamut of postproduction crafts as well as from the agency and brand ranks, will meet this spring under the leadership of AICP Post Awards chairperson James Razzall, U.S. president of advertising, Framestore.
The extended entry deadline for the full suite of AICP Awards--which includes The AICP Show: The Art & Technique of the Commercial, and the AICP Next Awards--is Wednesday, March 5. Full entry details can be found here. The results of each show will debut during AICP Week in New York this June, and be featured at a gala celebration at The Museum of Modern Art.
One of Razzall’s key responsibilities as chair is to form the AICP Post Awards Curatorial Committee, which will determine the selection of the final winners and choose the Post Awards Best of Show from among the category winners. “I was looking for the best people at the top level in all their respective crafts,” explained Razzall. “We aimed to be as diverse and geographically as broad as possible. And we looked for cross-discipline opinions. We strove for a mix of people, including those who curate the work, not just our peers in post but also the best people we have worked with on the brand and agency side.
“Across the board, we were looking for people with a strong voice,” Razzall continued. “Our goal is to have a proper conversation, so we can filter through to make sure the best work is being recognized. When you consider the amount of effort that’s gone into these entries and the level of craft that they exhibit, we owe them that respect and honor of judging the work... Read More