LOS ANGELES Independent meadsdurket has been awarded regional creative, media and strategic planning chores for Pick Up Stix, a chain of 108 Asian food restaurants in California, Arizona and Nevada, the agency said.
Jeff Warne, president and COO of Pick Up Stix, said in a statement that the San Diego agency showed itself "able to understand a complex business environment and somehow distill it into a single, unique, marketable idea."
Carlson Restaurants Worldwide, which also operates the TGI Fridays chain, owns Pick Up Stix, which launched the review about two months ago, said agency president and COO Gary Meads.
"We were awarded the business based on our top-line thinking and how we approached the brand, not on a particular spec assignment," said Meads. "They were impressed by our traffic building for companies like Del Mar Thoroughbred Club."
The pitch team also included Tony Durket, partner and creative director; Emily Rex, management supervisor; and Katie Feifer, planning director.
Contenders in the two-month review were undisclosed.
Costa Mesa, Calif.-based Pick Up Sticks spent only $60,000 advertising in the first quarter, per Nielsen Monitor-Plus, but the client expects to dramatically expand its marketing this year, Meads said.
San Diego-based meadsdurket also handles creative for Union Bank of California and General Dynamics, among others. Meads said creative is expected within the next two months.