- Adweek Staff

BOSTON Independent Winsper here today broke its first ads for chainsaw maker Stihl since winning the account following a recent review.

The new text-heavy work uses the economy as an unlikely springboard to sell saws. One ad is headlined "Consumer confidence. Something you'll always find in the Stihl portfolio."

The effort bows in the print and online versions of USA Today and The Wall Street Journal.

Agency principal Jeff Winsper said of the strategy: "Consumers need to make smart choices with their pocketbooks in a downtrodden, negative news environment. We feel this ad clearly communicates the passion, advantage and continued opportunity for a consumer with the power to do more by 'investing' in a premium Stihl product."

Virginia Beach, Va.-based Stihl spends upwards of $20 million annually on ads, and spent nearly $15 million through the first eight months of 2008, per Nielsen Monitor-Plus. The company hired Winsper to help evolve its three-year-old "Why?" positioning.

Ken Waldron, client national marketing manager, called the work "category breaking" and said it "reinforces our leadership in developing superior outdoor power equipment."