Sour Patch Kids (SPK)'s newest campaign marks a return to Twitch; the brand teamed up with four creators for the initiative. Each Twitch star - Athena, GernaderJake, JonSandman and Rizzo - will be the face of a candy flavor, announcing each in two-hour solo live streams. Each flavor's packaging bears a Twitch creator's face, so fans will vote for their favorite flavors online. In the end, all four creators will team up for a "Squad Stream" in which they'll compete in a game of Rocket League. ...

Update: Ulta Beauty lost its top marketer when its former CMO, Shelley Haus, recently passed away after a battle with cancer. Haus joined the company's marketing team almost a decade ago and became its CMO around two years ago. A new CMO could lead to strategy shifts that result in higher spend and/or agency reviews, so we'll let you know when Ulta finds a replacement. The company is primarily targeting Gen-Z and millennials, and it's currently utilizing national TV, digital, paid social, ...

Netflix started ramping up advertising for its reality and romance genre with new work from Chemistry. Dubbed "Love Has No Off Season," the contest-centered promotion let fans be paired with Netflix reality stars as their plus-ones to weddings this summer. We'll likely see more promotional activity around the genre throughout the summer, so sellers should contact soon to secure last-minute ad dollars. So far this year, iSpot reports Netflix has spent approximately $27m on national TV comme...

The Portland Trail Blazers (PTB) announced it hired Kevin Kinghorn as CMO & EVP in June 2022. Kinghorn most recently served as chief digital officer of PS&Co., where he led the sports and digital teams. He was Canucks Sports & Entertainment's marketing VP prior to that. In his new role, Kinghorn will be responsible for all marketing innovation and technology functions for the PTB and its home arena, Moda Center.  According to Pathmatics, the NBA earned 2.4b impressions YTD through Facebook...

FanDuel is now an official sports betting partner of the New York Yankees. This partnership will allow FanDuel to use the Yankees' logo in its marketing. FanDuel will also be allowed to place signage behind home plate and in right field at Yankee Stadium during home games. FanDuel originally partnered with the Yankees in 2020 as the team's fantasy platform provider. We told you about FanDuel's new creative AOR last August.  According to Pathmatics, FanDuel earned 2.2b impressions YTD throu...

Twitter recently launched a new shopping feature called Product Drops. This will allow brands to preview new products before they go on sale. Twitter users will be able to select a "remind me" option at the bottom of the tweet that will sign them up for a reminder 15 minutes before the product is released. The notification will prompt users with a "shop on website" button, which will allow them to purchase products directly from the brand's website. It is testing the feature with notable bran...

Midea America Corp. launched its first US cross-platform marketing campaign on June 15th. The campaign is headlined by a 60-second hero spot that will be supported across CTV and social media. Three more 30-second spots will be released later this month. The ads star the company's celebrity ambassador and chief idea officer Sam Richardson. Midea worked with its new full-service AOR, Pereira & O'Dell, on the campaign.  According to Pathmatics, Midea earned 11.4m impressions YTD through Inst...

Bombas named Horizon Next its video AOR in June 2022. This includes strategic planning, buying, customer segmentation and audience analytics. The company's DMs also described the remit as TV AOR. This could lead to spend shifts, so sellers keep an eye on this company.  According to Pathmatics, Bombas earned 615.6m impressions YTD through Facebook ads (47%), desktop video ads (27%), Instagram ads (25%) and desktop display ads (1%). It placed the majority (99%) of these ads directly onto sit...

Zaxby's appointed Patrick Schwing as chief marketing & strategy officer in June 2022. Schwing most recently served as the CMO and president of Arby's. He will now handle eCommerce, marketing communications, digital/social media, R&D and loyalty. This hire could lead to agency reviews and spend shifts, so keep an eye on the chicken finger chain. We told you about the chain's new CEO earlier this year.  Per Pathmatics, Zaxby's earned 423.6m impressions YTD through desktop video ads (45%), Fa...

Hooters promoted Bruce Skala to CMO, effective June 2022. Skala joined the chain in 2013 as marketing and beverages VP before being promoted to marketing SVP in 2020. He was the marketing VP of Taco Mac Restaurant Group prior to that. Skala will now be responsible for digital customer engagement, brand licensing, partnerships, global campaigns, traditional media and social media. Keep an eye on this chain because Skala's promotion will affect its marketing strategy and could lead to agency re...