What Pitbull and Horizon Media Hope to Achieve in Their New Partnership

Last week, Horizon Media, one of the largest media agencies in the country, announced a partnership with pop icon and entrepreneur Armando Christian Pérez, better known as Pitbull, designed to address content in the multicultural space better. The agency, 305 Worldwide, a mashup of two of Pérez’s best-known nicknames (Mr. 305 and Mr. Worldwide) will start with offices in Miami and New York, and the star will have a minority stake in the new endeavor. The collaboration took about a year of gestation after Bill Koenigsberg, Horizon Media’s founder, president and CEO, interviewed Pérez during an internal company fireside chat. According to Koenigsberg, he was taken with the Cuban-American’s story and contributions to communities. [kickout id="2"] “As I was doing the [chat] with him, I got a much better sense of who he is as a person through how he has used marketing to the multicultural community, his charitable work and what he stands for,” said Koenigsberg. “I said to myself, ‘you know, he’d be an incredible partner.’” For his part, Pérez saw that the pair would be simpatico and kindred spirits on the pathway to engaging diverse audiences. “[Koenigsberg] wanted to get into the multicultural space and he felt that it was being underserved,” he said. “They needed somebody that has lived it and can bring companies into the culture with something that is empowering, motivating, inspiring and not disrespecting in any way.” While there is a great deal of talk about multicultural advertising and marketing, Koenigsberg noted that he and Pérez saw some “white space,” specifically around the lack of quality storytelling in the market that accounts for $3.9 trillion in combined buying power, according to a University of Georgia multicultural economy report. “Personally, I can’t name a lot of great multicultural agencies in the U.S. doing amazing work,” said Koenigsberg. “You think of traditional agencies like Wieden and Droga. But who comes to mind as doing great work in the multicultural world? I think there’s an opportunity for someone to rise to the top, and I hope it’s us.” “People have to admit that this is the lay of the land at this point,” added Pérez. “The face is changing in not only the United States but the world. When you tap into that buying power and that kind of culture, you want to make sure that you’re respecting it. [Brands] may not be trying to be disrespectful, but they just don’t know any better.” [kickout id="3"] One of the more enticing things that brought Koenigsberg and Pérez together was independence, both in a real sense (Horizon Media is staunchly independent) and the spirit of the word. “You’re beholden to yourself and not to stockholders,” said Koenigsberg. “There are certain assets of being publicly held, but there are drawbacks. [Being independent makes] decision-making more fluid and quicker because you don’t have to worry about how it might impact a quarterly report or annual earnings.” Indeed, the ability to move fast helped close the deal with Pérez in the first place. “I snatched him up faster than anybody,” noted Koenigsberg. “That was a competitive advantage in that we didn’t have to deal with a lot of bureaucracy to get this done.” “To me, independence is the most important thing,” added Pérez. “That’s why everybody tries to get to this country … for freedom. [In business, being independent means] you can pivot when you want to pivot and move when you want to move. When you’re part of the corporate game, and all the red tape and politics, it’s hard to take advantage and maneuver.” Throughout his career, Grammy-winner and Miami native Pérez has mined a wide territory outside of his musical career including his involvement in the city’s burgeoning tech scene (startups pitched Pérez during the eMerge Americas conference last year) and his role in starting the Sports Leadership and Management Academy (SLAM) charter school in Little Havana which has expanded to Las Vegas and West Palm Beach, Fla. [kickout id="1"] On the brand side, he has developed products like Voli 305 vodka, his “Pitbull” fragrance line, and worked with brands like Norwegian Cruise Lines and Walmart, where, in 2012, he performed at the store in Kodiak, Alaska after SomethingAwful.com encouraged people to send him there for a Facebook contest. All the while, Pérez has leaned into the opportunities he has created, not forgetting the importance of the hustle that he learned to help him thrive in Miami. “There are a lot of first-generation Cubans, Cuban-Americans and Cubans that came from the country that had everything stripped away in the revolution with Castro,” he said, defining the Miami hustle. “They had to rebuild. You had doctors and lawyers cleaning floors and toilets [when they came to Miami]. Then there was cocaine, which boosted the economy, and that’s what I grew up around and shaped my mentality and hustle. The ones that survived moved under the radar and built their businesses and found a way out.” [kickout id="4"] Over the past four decades, the city has evolved and is now in a moment where it impacts, as Pérez puts it “everything that moves in the world” and has gone from “La Quinceañera to a very sophisticated, powerful woman.” While Miami informs the name and spirit of the agency, Pérez’s global footprint and Koenigsberg’s ambition go beyond the city. “He will have a voice,” said Koenigsberg, who has partnered with Katie Couric Media on projects with P&G and Sleep Number and contends that more agency/talent partnerships with brands will evolve. “He’s not afraid to tell a client what he thinks, has a great creative eye and gets business. Brand purpose is becoming more valuable for brands, and finding their voice in the multicultural community is important.” “I’m excited about this opportunity,” said Pérez. “And I can’t wait to hit the ground running.”