Pier 1, Campbell-Ewald Split; 'Closed' Review Begins

DETROIT Pier 1 has parted with IPG's Campbell-Ewald and invited a select list of undisclosed shops into a "closed review," with a decision expected by September, a client rep said Friday. C-E president and managing director Jim Palmer called the loss "disappointing" but said he was proud of the shop's "distinctive creative achievements." The Fort Worth, Texas-based retailer spends about $60 million annually on ads, according to Nielsen Monitor Plus. The client made a major switch this year, replacing Kirstie Alley, its longtime spokeswoman, with Thom Filicia of Bravo's Queer Eye for the Straight Guy.



Lenox Lewis Headlines in Red Stripe Ads, Web Shorts

NEW YORK Starting this week, retired heavyweight boxer Lenox Lewis will star in a 30-second spot for Red Stripe beer via Omnicom's BBDO, New York, and in the first of what could be a series of Web shorts. The Red Stripe Ambassador, donning boxing gloves and shorts, invites viewers to watch him fight Lewis in a "friendly bout." As Lewis, who has Jamaican roots, pounds the stuffing out of a punching bag, the Ambassador cancels the fight and sends viewers to RedStripeBeer.com to learn how to cook pressed fried plantains. The spot will run on outlets such as Comedy Central and ESPN in a broader placement than Red Stripe is used to, after spending just $3 million in media last year, per TNS/CMR. Diageo also is launching the Red Stripe 7-inch Single Series, a limited-edition release of 1,000 vinyl records featuring alt-rockers Reputation and Washdown that will be distributed to club deejays, music insiders and at Red Stripe music events.



Steel Takes Sabbatical After 10 Months at Berlin Cameron

NEW YORK Jon Steel, who joined WPP's Berlin Cameron/Red Cell in September as vice chairman, is taking a sabbatical from the agency, effective last week, sources said. Steel, one of the most respected account planners in advertising, helped the agency develop the "Real" strategy and campaign for Coke Classic. He completed his role for WPP in the global Samsung pitch in South Korea last week. Sources said Steel is taking an undetermined amount of time off to complete a novel. Before joining Berlin Cameron, he had been a worldwide planning consultant for WPP since February 2002.



Sugartown Creative Opens With Bombay Sapphire Biz

NEW YORK Former Margeotes|Fertitta + Partners co-creative director Fritz Westenberger and group managing director Jolie Defeis have left the MDC shop to start their own, New York-based Sugartown Creative. The duo resigned in early June and shortly thereafter lured away the $30 million U.S. and global Bombay Sapphire account, which had been with M|F+P since 2000. Accompanying the co-presidents are account executive Larson Banilower and Sam Rubenstein, who will become financial chief, Westenberger said.



Air Force Reserve to Hold Pre-RFI Briefing in $20 Mil. Review

CHICAGO Officials with the U.S. Air Force Reserve will hold a pre-proposal briefing for interested agencies this Thursday, according to an officer involved with the review. Proposals for the reserve's $20 million national and local recruiting account are due back July 19, according to R. Eric Snipes, chief master sergeant of the Warner Robins, Ga.-based client. After reviewing proposals, a cut will be made to an undetermined number of finalists, with presentations scheduled for the second week of August, Snipes said. A decision is expected by Oct. 1. Seven-year incumbent TMP Worldwide in Atlanta is not participating.



First Corvette Spot Since '97 To Break During Olympics

New York Campbell-Ewald will launch the first TV work for Chevrolet's Corvette since 1997 during coverage of the Summer Olympics in August. The Guy Ritchie-directed spot, introducing the C6 model, kicks off the third wave of General Motors' "American revolution" campaign for Chevy, which launched in January. Sources estimated GM will spend $100 million on this leg of the effort. Designed to lionize the car itself as well as Chevrolet's "golden bowtie" brand marque, the commercial follows a child's schoolyard fantasy of driving the new Corvette around New York City. The ad was shot in New York last week. TV will be supported by print and nontraditional media in the fall. The C6 Corvette appeared briefly in the "American revolution" launch spot, in which Chevrolet vehicles climb onto a moving car carrier.



Overture Launches Local Search Advertising Unit, LocalMatch

NEW YORK Overture, the Yahoo! division devoted to search advertising, today launches LocalMatch, a product aimed at advertisers who want to target local customers. The product will be available on many of the sites that license Overture's search-advertising technology, including Yahoo!, Microsoft's MSN and ESPN.com. The pay-for-performance service is intended for national and regional advertisers looking to drive traffic to specific locations and for small businesses who want to make sure they are included in search results. Overture's entry comes a little more than three months after rival Google officially announced the beta version of Google Local. Google declined comment. Verizon entered the local ad-search market in early March, when it revamped its SuperPages.com site to take advantage of the pay-for-performance model in local search.



Shops Await Cut to 6 in Nissan's $30 Mil. Hispanic Review

LOS ANGELES The RFIs for Nissan North America's estimated $30 million-plus Hispanic agency review were due back last week to search consultant Select Resources International, Santa Monica, Calif., with a cut to six contenders expected soon and a decision by early fall. Independent incumbent Ornelas & Associates, Dallas and Santa Monica, Calif., will defend. Several of the agency's spots, including "Wild Card" for Frontier trucks, also ran in the general market.