Young & Rubicam Inc.’s Irvine office just got about $90 million more in billings, having recently received two big Sony Electronics Inc. accounts valued at $80 million from other Y & R; offices and won a $10 million chunk of business from Mattel Inc.
The new accounts bring the ad shop’s annual capitalized billings to more than $650 million, mak-ing it Young & Rubicam’s second-largest worldwide, behind its flagship New York digs.
“Usually you would think of huge media markets being the big offices for agencies, in New York, London, Paris and San Francisco,” said David Murphy, president of Y & R; Advertising, Irvine.
For the past four years, Young & Rubicam has handled advertising for New Jersey-based Sony Electronics, the U.S. arm of Japan’s Sony Corp. Portions of the account were divided among various Y & R; offices. In October, Y & R;’s Irvine office pulled in two chunks of Sony’s business: VAIO computers and digital imaging products, accounts previously handled by Y & R;’s San Francisco and New York offices, respectively.
“Sony was seeking one office where they could bring together both brands and pursue an integrated marketing program,” Murphy said.
Good Fit
The Y & R; office in Irvine was a convenient fit. In August, Sony opened a new division called Personal Network Solutions Co. down the freeway in San Diego to house marketing and engineering for the VAIO and digital imaging product lines.
Another draw for Sony was the structure of Y & R;’s Irvine office, Murphy said. The agency followed Lincoln Mercury out from Detroit to OC two years ago. But instead of establishing a simple service office, the Irvine location houses four other Young & Rubicam units: Burson-Marsteller, which does public relations and perception management; impiric, which handles customer relationship management, interactive services and electronic business; Landor, brand consulting and design; and The Media Edge, media buying and planning services.
“We’re now organized to bring to clients a truly objective mix of communications to solve their needs,” Murphy said. “It’s a very novel idea to bundle all those services under one roof.”
He also credited that structure for Y & R;’s win of El Segundo-based Mattel’s $10 million creative account for Generation Girl, a new line of dolls. There was no incumbent agency on the account. But the OC shop won it in a competitive review with undisclosed agencies. Y & R; will handle television and prints ads, media planning and buying.
Mattel and Young & Rubicam are not strangers. The agency’s New York office handles advertising for Fisher-Price, a Mattel division.
“With the growth and success of the Irvine office, it provides an opportunity for Y & R; to service LA-based clients,” Murphy said.
Beefing Up
Since moving to OC two years ago, Y & R; has beefed up its local client roster, which now includes Chevron, El Torito and Taco Bell retail advertising, and increased its employee count from 40 to 400. (There are an additional 100 employees based in satellite offices around the country that report to Irvine).
With the recent Sony and Mattel wins, Murphy said the ad shop plans to again increase its workforce. Y & R;, which has a 53,000-square-foot office in the Irvine Spectrum, has leased a second 32,000-square-foot office next door, Murphy said. He expects to begin moving in at the end of January.
“The future is very bright,” Murphy said. “It’s this positive cycle. More and more blue-chip clients are moving into the area. If OC agencies are working with these clients it makes it easier to pull in top-notch talent from around the country.”
About two years ago Southfield, Mich.-based Doner, OC’s third-largest ad agency with about $400 million in annual capitalized billings, opened a shop in Newport Beach to better serve its biggest client, Mazda North American Operations.
Meanwhile, Y & R; recently hired John Doyle, formerly executive director at Publicis/Hal Riney in San Francisco, as its new executive creative director. Doyle is one of the top five creative directors in the world, according to Murphy.
“It’s that cycle that will begin breaking down the so-called Orange Curtain. People from all over the country want to do interesting work for interesting clients,” Murphy said. n
