Account Wins Prompt Costa Mesa Expansion for Casanova
By JENNIFER BELLANTONIO
Casanova Pendrill Inc. is moving to bigger space after winning some high-profile accounts.
The Hispanic advertising shop, which is part of New York-based Interpublic Group of Cos., plans to move its headquarters from Irvine to Costa Mesa later this week, according to Dan Nance (photo), Casanova’s chief executive.
Casanova, Orange County’s largest Hispanic ad shop, recently signed a $1.9 million lease at 275 McCormick Ave. in the Red Hill Corporate Center, a former warehouse that was converted to a low-rise office campus in 2001.
The ad shop is set to occupy about 17,700 square feet of space, which is about 25% larger than its current office, Nance said.
“We have options for future growth,” he said.
In the past year, Casanova has won several national accounts in competitive reviews. They include Time Warner Inc.’s AOL Latino, America Online Inc.’s Hispanic Internet service, Bush Brothers & Co.’s Bush’s Beans and work from Johnson & Johnson.
The shop is handling Hispanic advertising for Johnson & Johnson’s baby products and Ortho-Evra, a new contraceptive patch.
Casanova Pendrill also has been doing work for Kohl’s Corp., which launched 28 stores in Southern California last year and has had a rough start here. The shop has worked on the account since the Wisconsin-based chain launched here.
But Kohl’s has had a hard time here luring shoppers from entrenched competitors such as Target Corp. and its Mervyn’s chain. That goes for Hispanics, too.
$140M in ’03 Billings
Casanova, which is celebrating its 20th anniversary this year, also does marketing for General Mills Inc.’s Yoplait and the California Lottery.
The shop recently reported capitalized billings of $140 million for 2003, which was up 17% from a year earlier.
The added work prompted Casanova Pendrill to up its staff by about 20%, Nance said. It now counts about 60 workers.
Hires were made across the board, including in account management and the creative department, he said. Casanova also brought on a director of strategic planning and a promotions director, two newly created positions at Casanova.
“2004 will mark a stronger year than 2003 for our segment given the heightened awareness of the overall business community and advertisers to the U.S. Hispanic market,” Nance said.
The release of the 2000 U.S. Census report, which detailed Hispanics’ rapid population growth, “further propelled what was already a hot consumer segment,” he said.
Companies continue to step up their efforts to reach Hispanic consumers, who are nearly 40 million strong in the U.S. and make up a third of OC’s population of 3 million.
In March, Los Angeles Times publisher Tribune Co. launched its new Hispanic paper for the Southland, Hoy, which is competing with La Opinion and The Orange County Register’s Spanish-language newspaper Excelsior.
In 2002, Fountain Valley-based Hyundai Motor America upped its Hispanic marketing budget and sponsored the 2002 World Cup soccer tournament.
Cypress-based PacifiCare Health Systems Inc. tapped Santa Monica-based Anita Santiago Advertising last year to create its first ad campaign aimed at Latinos.
The jump in demand has turned up heat for Casanova Pendrill.
“Competition is always increasing in our segment,” Nance said. “General market agencies are waking up to the business opportunity, and many are trying to staff internally to retain Hispanic marketing responsibilities for their current clients.”
Sees Revenue Jump
The shop doesn’t see things cooling off, according to Nance. The shop is expecting to see a 20% to 30% jump in revenue this year, he said.
“Clients are all expanding advertising support as well as expanding integrated marketing programs,” he said.
Integrated programs use various marketing tactics, such as promotions, public relations, broadcast and online ads.
Rich Essen and Paul Root of Cushman & Wakefield Inc.’s Irvine office represented Casanova in its Costa Mesa lease. The landlord, TAVP Properties LLC, was represented by Phil Cohen of CB Richard Ellis Inc.’s Newport Beach office.
