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McKinney ad agency wins Crocs account [The News & Observer (Raleigh, N.C.)](News & Observer (Raleigh, NC) Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) Nov. 11--Forgive the folks at Durham advertising agency McKinney if they're talking a lot of Croc these days. McKinney announced Tuesday that it has been tapped to handle global advertising for Crocs, the Colorado-based footwear company. Financial details weren't disclosed. McKinney, by far the Triangle's largest ad agency, will focus on branding and marketing efforts in the U.S., China, Japan, South Korea, the United Kingdom and Germany. The Crocs account will be handled by the agency's 30-person New York office; McKinney also has 160 workers in Durham. "Few brands generate as much passion and discussion as Crocs does," McKinney CEO Brad Brinegar said in a prepared statement. McKinney is Crocs' first global agency since 2010, when the footwear maker brought the bulk of its advertising work in-house, according to trade publication Ad Age. Crocs' brightly colored plastic clogs were a sensation more than a decade ago, and the company has sold more than 200 million shoes. But Crocs is no longer the hot new brand and the company has been hurt by overexpansion. In July the company unveiled a restructuring that includes closing, or converting to third-party operators, 75 to 100 Crocs stores worldwide. In the third quarter, Crocs' revenue rose 5 percent to $302.4 million. Net income was $15.8 million, up from $13 million a year ago. Among McKinney's other clients are Sherwin-Williams, Nationwide, Travelocity, Samsung, Mentos, ESPN and Gold's Gym. McKinney was acquired in 2012 by Cheil Worldwide, a global marketing and communications company based in South Korea. Last year McKinney added a New York office by absorbing Cheil USA, the U.S. unit of its corporate parent. Ranii: 919-829-4877 ___ (c)2014 The News & Observer (Raleigh, N.C.) Visit The News & Observer (Raleigh, N.C.) at www.newsobserver.com Distributed by MCT Information Services |