Walton Isaacson Slows Things Down for Cruzan Rum

Following on the heels of last year’s “Don’t Hurry” campaign, Walton Isaacson has created a series of follow-up ads for Cruzan Rum. Keeping that campaign’s tagline and focus on slowing down to live in the moment, this year’s iteration takes things off the metaphorical “Don’t Hurry” island to everyday life.

In the new series of ads, people are shown in common situations where hurrying really isn’t getting them anywhere, including speed dating (above) and speed chess. The digital campaign includes these two 30-second spots, as well as three 15-second pre-roll videos, and will be supported by social media, public relations and retail extensions.

“If you hurry through life, you could miss something big, and that’s what we really want people to take away from the campaign,” explained Brendan Lynch, senior director of rum & cordials at Beam Suntory. “We’re often so focused on what’s in front of us that we miss what’s going on around us. It’s important to slow down, take the time to enjoy the best things in life, like Cruzan Rum, one sip at a time – and our fans agree.”

Stick around for “Speed Chess,” a recipe for “Cruzan Life’s A Peach” and credits following the jump. Don’t forget to lightly slap your mint sprig. continued…

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WPP’s Maxus Appoints New North American CEO

This morning in news that has nothing to do with the Omnicom/Publicis collapse, WPP/GroupM media agency Maxus poached a top executive from Omnicom’s PHD.

Steve Williams, who spent two years as president at PHD, will be Maxus’ new North American CEO starting June 1, replacing the retiring Louis Jones; Williams will report to global CEO Vikram Sakhuja as well as GroupM’s North American chief Kelly Clark.

In the new role, Williams will work with the New York, L.A., Chicago, Minneapolis and Toronto offices of what the press release and RECMA call “the fastest growing global media agency for the past four years.”

Before joining PHD, Williams served as CEO of the UK’s OMD Group.

No word on how much pleasure Martin Sorrell took in making this announcement.

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