Eager to Boost Its U.S. Profile, Tim Horton’s Names Horizon Media as Agency of Record

Independent media agency Horizon Media continued its new-business winning streak this week by picking up the U.S. agency of record assignment for Canadian coffee-and-doughnut chain Tim Horton's.

The agency will be charged with handling media planning and activation across all channels for the chain, which has attempted to boost its profile in the U.S. in recent years with initiatives like its partnership with Nutella. While Canada remains the primary market for the Ontario brand, Tim Horton's currently has 650 locations south of the border, maintains a considerable presence in the Middle East and plans to move from coffee to tea by opening its first British location in the coming months.

The chain was acquired by Burger King in late 2014. The merger created the world's third-largest restaurant services company.

The Tim Horton's win caps a productive period for Horizon Media, whose expanding client roster currently includes Burger King, Capital One and Weight Watchers along with recent additions La Quinta Inns and Suites, Sperry, Chobani and LG Electronics. Such wins have enabled Horizon to hire more than 400 employees over the past 12 months while adding two floors to its growing New York office.

According to Kantar Media, Tim Horton's spent approximately $11.5 million on measured media in 2015 and $3 million in the first quarter of this year. Horizon's first work for its newest client, which has worked with J. Walter Thompson Canada and Ogilvy & Mather on recent campaigns, will debut this month.