Pytka Picked; Levi Cuts Ritts Loose By Daniel S. Levin

SAN FRANCISCO - Levi Strauss & Co. has dropped Herb Ritts, replacing him with Joe Pytka to direct the next Loose jeans campaign, a reflection of growing conce

Sources familiar with the campaign, said the ads – launched by Foote, Cone & Belding here in the summer of 1992 – had been highly effective in generating sales and positioning Loose as a distinct, fashionable line. At the same time, the work – which some insiders disparagingly referred to as ‘boys on the beach commercials’ – gave Levi’s an image that they feared can negatively impact its other lines.
‘There’s concern that Levi’s are starting to stand for something other than what Levi’s has always stood for,’ said one source familiar with the advertising.