is the Range Rover Evoque a designer handbag?

I was wondering round Leeds the other week when I saw the new baby Range Rover Evoque on display in the middle of an upmarket shopping arcade. Of course I had a nosey – I’m always on the lookout for my motoring holy grail, an automatic that’s good on the motorway, is small enough to … Continue reading is the Range Rover Evoque a designer handbag?

TV ad in actual behaviour change shocker

I put Winter Tyres on the car last week (it’s rear wheel drive, I got stuck three times last Winter).  There’s a badly shot but concise video explanation of the benefits of switching here. I asked the nice bloke at Kwik Fit how many people he thought would be doing the same as me this … Continue reading TV ad in actual behaviour change shocker

innovation and insight in perfume sample packaging

A sample of Thierry Mugler’s perfume Womanity fell out of this month’s Glamour magazine (don’t judge me, it’s buy that or sit in the hairdressers reading three month old copies of Hello!). I’ve never seen a perfume sample packaged like this before and a quick google only reveals examples of it used over the last … Continue reading innovation and insight in perfume sample packaging

Dear Spire: BIG mistake, huge, doubleDcup massive…

I was in Edinburgh with a group of friends last weekend and we were stopped in our tracks on the first day by this: No, not an ad for a women’s mag, it’s an ad for breast augmentation.  From the national, respectable chain of private hospitals Spire Healthcare (who used to be Bupa Hospitals).  Who … Continue reading Dear Spire: BIG mistake, huge, doubleDcup massive…

If it’s on a lorry, then it’s consumer communications

Driving back up the M1 after a horse show last weekend I saw the side of a lorry that proudly stated ‘for all your pizza needs’.  Googling hasn’t thrown up a picture of the offending vehicle (and I was hardly going to snap away whilst driving), so I’ve lovingly mocked it up in powerpoint: A … Continue reading If it’s on a lorry, then it’s consumer communications

Whatever happened to Pitch Season?

In the world of agency New Business, you used to know where you were by simply looking at the calendar.  Pitch Season ran according to the academic year, with a particular spike in activity between September and the end of November. I’ve been working in and around agencies for twelve years now and one of … Continue reading Whatever happened to Pitch Season?

The Laws of the Pitch Room

Even though I’m freelance I still take part in quite a few proper pitches.  I mean the full-blown strategy + creative + logistics + budget presentations in front of senior clients where they decide based on a ninety minute presentation whether or not to spend a million pounds plus with the agency. Comparing these agency … Continue reading The Laws of the Pitch Room

What’s going on with sausage food styling?

I seem to keep seeing rather a lot of ads focusing on the humble British sausage. But what surprises me about them all is that the food stylist / art director / director / client chose to illustrate the all-round awesomeness of the sausage with a plate of grilled sausages, mash and peas (or sausage, … Continue reading What’s going on with sausage food styling?