Ferndale, Michigan, Feb 15, 2009 – On the heels of winning six awards including a “Best of Show” in the Print category for their client Founders Brewing Co. at this past December’s 2009 D Show, DRIVEN, celebrates its fifth anniversary with a slew of MI based AOR wins – LaFontaine Automotive Group, Munder Capital Management, and Elite Arms LLC.
“After weathering last year’s less than stellar economy, we’ve hit the ground running in 2010 and are looking forward to an exciting year,” says DRIVEN Chief Marketing Officer, Sam Chiodo. “We moved from Royal Oak to Ferndale into a new space that we love and we’re winning new business based on our unique creative point of view and significant returns on our respective client’s marketing investments – all proof that creativity, hard work, and results are a winning formula.”
Work for the new AOR clients is underway, with branding efforts for each to hit the streets over the next few months. In it’s sixth year, the agency’s client roster continues to grow including recently launching Michigan based manufacturer of electric vehicle charging stations PEP Stations LLC, and handling several store grand re-openings for Big Boy Restaurants International, LLC.
“It’s tough out there, but we’ve stayed focused on doing the best work we can, and clients of all shapes and sizes can appreciate that,” says one of the agencies Chief Creative Officers, John Cymbal. “I think people are starting to discover that creativity and the nimbleness of a small shop can come in handy at times like these.”
For additional information contact Sam Chiodo at 248 548 3393 or visit www.drivensolutionsinc.com.
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
Friday, December 4, 2009
Bill Shea's Crain's Blog
IT'S TIME TO LIGHT THE LIGHTS ...: Last night was the third annual black-tie D Awards show at the Max. Unlike most staid awards ceremonies, the audience is always mixture of the raucous theater crowd from "The Muppet Show" and the rowdy disciplinary hearing scene in "Animal House." Which means it was great, albeit a little R-rated, fun. All that was missing was live chickens and seltzer bottles.
blog post photoThe sound of beer bottles rolling down the inclined aisles and glass wine goblets shattering on the floor lasted for much of the ceremony. Get some booze into advertising creatives and all bets are off.
There was lots of great work and the freewheeling crowd was happy to cheer their competitors and themselves. Team Detroit and Campbell-Ewald took home the most script letter D trophies.
The boys from Ferndale's Driven Solutions Inc. (I profiled them in 2008) took home several prizes, including a best-in-class in the print category for their campaign for Grand Rapids-based Founders Brewing Co. However, the awards program called them Driven Communications, which is another company altogether. Oops.
A sort of grim undercurrent throughout the show was the sense that that the fun may end at any moment because of the state of the advertising industry -- fraught with uncertainty because of the automaker's woes and Detroit's problems.
http://www.crainsdetroit.com/section/c?template=profile&uid=140106&plckPersonaPage=PersonaBlog
blog post photoThe sound of beer bottles rolling down the inclined aisles and glass wine goblets shattering on the floor lasted for much of the ceremony. Get some booze into advertising creatives and all bets are off.
There was lots of great work and the freewheeling crowd was happy to cheer their competitors and themselves. Team Detroit and Campbell-Ewald took home the most script letter D trophies.
The boys from Ferndale's Driven Solutions Inc. (I profiled them in 2008) took home several prizes, including a best-in-class in the print category for their campaign for Grand Rapids-based Founders Brewing Co. However, the awards program called them Driven Communications, which is another company altogether. Oops.
A sort of grim undercurrent throughout the show was the sense that that the fun may end at any moment because of the state of the advertising industry -- fraught with uncertainty because of the automaker's woes and Detroit's problems.
http://www.crainsdetroit.com/section/c?template=profile&uid=140106&plckPersonaPage=PersonaBlog
Thursday, December 3, 2009
DRIVEN wins best of show print at the D Awards
Universal Images takes best-in-show at the D Show awards
By Bill Shea
Rated by 2 people
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CORRECTION APPENDED
Southfield-based visual effects and post-production house Universal Images took the best-in-show award Wednesday night at the third-annual D Show advertising awards.
The company was honored for its work on the History Channel's “The Art of War” series. Christopher Wirth was the executive creative director on the work, which was computer-generated, stylized images of warfare through the ages.
The D Awards — everything from traditional print and broadcast ads to guerrilla marketing, cell-phone campaigns and computer effects are eligible and judged by outside experts — must have been produced by a Detroit-based agency or client between June 1, 2008, and May 31 of this year.
Other overall category winners:
• Print: Ferndale-based Driven Solutions Inc. for Founders Brewing Co.
• Out of home: Dearborn-based Team Detroit for Ford Motor Co.
• TV: Warren-based Campbell-Ewald for Kaiser Permanente.
• Digital media: Team Detroit for Ford.
• Integrated branding: Campbell-Ewald for U.S. Navy.
• The Craft Award: Universal Images for the History Channel.
• Ambassador Award: Campbell-Ewald for U.S. Navy (awarded for best marriage of creative content and context innovation).
“The Joe” award, judged by a panel of advertising industry journalists (including this reporter), was given to McCann Erickson for its “Pure Michigan” campaign for the Michigan Economic Development Corp.
The journalist award is for the entry the panel believes rose above all others.
The awards event is a production of the D Council, the Adcraft Club of Detroit committee that oversees the awards judging and “creative black-tie” presentation event at the Max M. Fisher Music Center.
About 700 people attended Wednesday.
Winners receive a small metal script letter D and a “bling” D necklace. The full list of winners will be posted in about a week at TheDShow.org.
The awards (other than The Joe) were determined by a panel of judges from advertising and creative agencies outside of Detroit.
The D Awards replaced the Caddy Awards, handed out since 1989 by the now-defunct Detroit Creative Directors Council. The Caddies ended in 2006.
There was a video tribute during the award ceremony for George Katsarelas, an executive creative director at Leo Burnett Detroit who died of a heart attack in June. Katsarelas had been chairman of the panel that oversees the D Awards.
Katsarelas, who had also worked for Doner and Campbell-Ewald, developed the “I'm In” campaign to better declining enrollment in Detroit Public Schools.
Leo Burnett's Jeff Cruz, a close friend of Katsarelas who led Wednesday's tribute and took over the chairmanship in his place, helped finish the campaign's most visible physical element, the 172 blue doors in Hart Plaza that represent each of the district's schools.
A memorial scholarship in his name has been established at Michigan State University's Department of Advertising, Public Relations, and Retailing within the College of Communications Arts and Sciences.
Mark Ford, a division president at Time Inc., announced during the ceremony that Campbell-Ewald is the winner of an advertising campaign contest, sponsored by the publishing giant's yearlong Assignment Detroit journalism project. The contest was to produce campaigns aimed at keeping young creative people to live and work in Detroit.
All five entries in the Time contest will run in several of the publisher's magazine and Web sites this month in ad inventory worth $1 million.
Correction: earlier online versions of this story, relying on erroneous information from the D Show, misstated the winner of the Print category. This version contains the corrected information.
By Bill Shea
Rated by 2 people
Rate This
Advertisement
CORRECTION APPENDED
Southfield-based visual effects and post-production house Universal Images took the best-in-show award Wednesday night at the third-annual D Show advertising awards.
The company was honored for its work on the History Channel's “The Art of War” series. Christopher Wirth was the executive creative director on the work, which was computer-generated, stylized images of warfare through the ages.
The D Awards — everything from traditional print and broadcast ads to guerrilla marketing, cell-phone campaigns and computer effects are eligible and judged by outside experts — must have been produced by a Detroit-based agency or client between June 1, 2008, and May 31 of this year.
Other overall category winners:
• Print: Ferndale-based Driven Solutions Inc. for Founders Brewing Co.
• Out of home: Dearborn-based Team Detroit for Ford Motor Co.
• TV: Warren-based Campbell-Ewald for Kaiser Permanente.
• Digital media: Team Detroit for Ford.
• Integrated branding: Campbell-Ewald for U.S. Navy.
• The Craft Award: Universal Images for the History Channel.
• Ambassador Award: Campbell-Ewald for U.S. Navy (awarded for best marriage of creative content and context innovation).
“The Joe” award, judged by a panel of advertising industry journalists (including this reporter), was given to McCann Erickson for its “Pure Michigan” campaign for the Michigan Economic Development Corp.
The journalist award is for the entry the panel believes rose above all others.
The awards event is a production of the D Council, the Adcraft Club of Detroit committee that oversees the awards judging and “creative black-tie” presentation event at the Max M. Fisher Music Center.
About 700 people attended Wednesday.
Winners receive a small metal script letter D and a “bling” D necklace. The full list of winners will be posted in about a week at TheDShow.org.
The awards (other than The Joe) were determined by a panel of judges from advertising and creative agencies outside of Detroit.
The D Awards replaced the Caddy Awards, handed out since 1989 by the now-defunct Detroit Creative Directors Council. The Caddies ended in 2006.
There was a video tribute during the award ceremony for George Katsarelas, an executive creative director at Leo Burnett Detroit who died of a heart attack in June. Katsarelas had been chairman of the panel that oversees the D Awards.
Katsarelas, who had also worked for Doner and Campbell-Ewald, developed the “I'm In” campaign to better declining enrollment in Detroit Public Schools.
Leo Burnett's Jeff Cruz, a close friend of Katsarelas who led Wednesday's tribute and took over the chairmanship in his place, helped finish the campaign's most visible physical element, the 172 blue doors in Hart Plaza that represent each of the district's schools.
A memorial scholarship in his name has been established at Michigan State University's Department of Advertising, Public Relations, and Retailing within the College of Communications Arts and Sciences.
Mark Ford, a division president at Time Inc., announced during the ceremony that Campbell-Ewald is the winner of an advertising campaign contest, sponsored by the publishing giant's yearlong Assignment Detroit journalism project. The contest was to produce campaigns aimed at keeping young creative people to live and work in Detroit.
All five entries in the Time contest will run in several of the publisher's magazine and Web sites this month in ad inventory worth $1 million.
Correction: earlier online versions of this story, relying on erroneous information from the D Show, misstated the winner of the Print category. This version contains the corrected information.
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
Thursday, October 15, 2009
Tuesday, October 6, 2009
DRIVEN SHIFTS GEARS - MOVES TO FASHIONABLE FERNDALE
Boutique ad agency DRIVEN has moved from its previous location of over two years at 310 Washington in Royal Oak, Michigan to a new location at 320 Nine Mile in Ferndale, Michigan.
“It’s a great feeling to be able to stay on the right track and keep moving forward during these harsh economic times,” says Kevin Woods, Principal and Chief Operating Officer. “Survive is the new thrive, and we’re excited that we’ll be able to continue to grow in Fashionable Ferndale.”
The new location, a former warehouse that had not been used for many years, has been renovated and built out to have a SOHO loft, industrial feel with a lot of open space. “We wanted to create an atmosphere that’s open and relaxed but still gives a nod to our Detroit industrial roots,” says Brian Cusac, one of DRIVEN’s four Principals and Chief Creative Officer.
DRIVEN, which was started by four young Detroit ad agency veterans over four years ago, is full-service agency with 10 full-time staffers and a rotating stable of seasoned creative professionals.
“Our mission is always about producing great creative product and effective solutions for our clients, but it’s always nice to have a killer space to do it in,” says John Cymbal, one of the four DRIVEN Principals. “As the client list continues to grow and the shop gains recognition for its work, we’ll have a great place to grow in.”
DRIVEN’s current client list is made up of many Michigan based companies including Wayne State University, Founders Brewing, United Road, Westborn Markets, Berger Chevrolet and several out of state companies such as Mike Bass Ford in Ohio.
“We just keep it simple, do smart work, and try to have fun,” says Sam Chiodo, Principal and Chief Marketing Officer for DRIVEN. “We work hard and our clients can see the results.”
DRIVEN is a small “think-tank” made up of professional renegades and rebels from the world of “big” advertising. They bring the experience of working on some of the largest brands in the world to the table for each client. Their solid relationships within the industry allow them to draw from the best in ideation and includes award-winning writers and art directors, as well as, artists, musicians, strategic thinkers, media planners, and dreamers, all of whom are DRIVEN to deliver cutting edge solutions for select clients.
“It’s a great feeling to be able to stay on the right track and keep moving forward during these harsh economic times,” says Kevin Woods, Principal and Chief Operating Officer. “Survive is the new thrive, and we’re excited that we’ll be able to continue to grow in Fashionable Ferndale.”
The new location, a former warehouse that had not been used for many years, has been renovated and built out to have a SOHO loft, industrial feel with a lot of open space. “We wanted to create an atmosphere that’s open and relaxed but still gives a nod to our Detroit industrial roots,” says Brian Cusac, one of DRIVEN’s four Principals and Chief Creative Officer.
DRIVEN, which was started by four young Detroit ad agency veterans over four years ago, is full-service agency with 10 full-time staffers and a rotating stable of seasoned creative professionals.
“Our mission is always about producing great creative product and effective solutions for our clients, but it’s always nice to have a killer space to do it in,” says John Cymbal, one of the four DRIVEN Principals. “As the client list continues to grow and the shop gains recognition for its work, we’ll have a great place to grow in.”
DRIVEN’s current client list is made up of many Michigan based companies including Wayne State University, Founders Brewing, United Road, Westborn Markets, Berger Chevrolet and several out of state companies such as Mike Bass Ford in Ohio.
“We just keep it simple, do smart work, and try to have fun,” says Sam Chiodo, Principal and Chief Marketing Officer for DRIVEN. “We work hard and our clients can see the results.”
DRIVEN is a small “think-tank” made up of professional renegades and rebels from the world of “big” advertising. They bring the experience of working on some of the largest brands in the world to the table for each client. Their solid relationships within the industry allow them to draw from the best in ideation and includes award-winning writers and art directors, as well as, artists, musicians, strategic thinkers, media planners, and dreamers, all of whom are DRIVEN to deliver cutting edge solutions for select clients.
Friday, August 14, 2009
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