Ad industry vets set up 50-plus shop By Shelly Garci

LOS ANGELES--Seven ad industry veterans have packaged their advertising expertise with their own personal perspectives and launched Older & Wiser Ltd. here, an

The seven, all 50-plus themselves, include manager director Ron Phillips, producer/director for Luminaire Productions; marketing director Sandy Inbody-Brick, Inbody-Brick Associates; media/research director James Spero, whose background includes stints at Bozell and DDB Needham; and creative directors John Annarino, a former cd at DDB Needham; Daniel Dixon, a former cd at Ogilvy & Mather; Bob Haddad, who had been with Haddad/Lawrence, now defunct; and Iz Liebowitz of Carlson Liebowitz & Olshever before that shop closed its doors. Phillips expects to wind down his production company in coming months. Inbody-Brick will keep her agency running for the time being.
The partners figure that ads targeted to consumers over 50 haven’t kept up with the changing profile of that market. The post-war generation is not only aging more gracefully than its predecessors, it will continue to lead consumer trends well into retirement years because of its size. “The baby boomers are going to reinvent the 50-and-over market,” said Phillips. “We’re going to make 50 and over chic.”
OWL, as the shop calls itself, doesn’t expect to win agency-of-record assignments–the execs hope to elbow in on projects targeted to the 50-plus market. The idea was Dixon’s, though all the principals have worked together in the past.
Inbody-Brick said she was feeling depressed the day she got the call proposing the new shop about five months ago and immediately embraced the idea. “The only negative thought I had was letting everyone know how old I am,” she said.
Copyright Adweek L.P. (1993)