Sullivan Branding of Memphis, Tennessee has hired veteran copywriter Keith Goldberg as its newest executive creative director.
Goldberg’s chief claim to fame in his two-decade ad career is writing the Capital One tagline “What’s In Your Wallet?” while with D’Arcy Advertising or DMB&B in the very early ’00s, and that effort later landed him a permanent spot on New York’s Advertising Walk of Fame (which we have strangely never seen).
The new ECD joins Sullivan from Seattle’s Bureau155, where he spent 5 1/2 years as a co-founder and chief creative and made at least one ad starring Macklemore.
Last year, Seattle Business named him one of the city’s top creative professionals, and he used the subsequent profile to explain that the now-famous wallet line came from “Helping an upstart credit card issuer … become a major financial services player.”
Agency founder and principal Brian Sullivan positions the Goldberg hire as part of an ongoing attempt to win national business. He writes, “Keith is a proven leader who knows how to develop teams, inspire great work, and create the fully integrated, multi-platform campaigns that drive growth for brands. His arrival is the result of our nationwide search to ensure Sullivan Branding’s clients continue to benefit from the best thinking and resources available.”
In a piece that ran last week in Commercial Appeal, Goldberg invited us to check out his tattoo and said, “Memphis is a city and Sullivan is an agency that is on the cusp of what’s next.” Sullivan himself said, “We wanted to hire somebody bigger than we are … We are stunned to get him.”
Goldberg started his agency career as a writer with BBDO, JWT and Y&R in New York, working on such accounts as Ernst & Young, Ford, GE and The New Republic before launching Bureau155 in 2011. That shop worked with a range of clients from Frito Lay and Fiji Water to Stacy’s Pita Chips and Target, with Goldberg’s work recognized by Cannes, the Addys, the Webbys and the Mobile Marketing Association.
“A resurgence of energy and talent and creativity in this town is attracting interest from all over the country,” said Goldberg in the release, “And we want Sullivan Branding to be the destination for clients, regardless of geography, who are searching for a fresh infusion of creativity for their brands.”