Havas snaps up agency behind Jack Daniel's advertising

Anna Clarke, brandrepublic.com, Tuesday, 08 May 2001, 3:16pm,

Arnold Worldwide, a unit of Havas Advertising, has bought Simmons Durham, the St Louis-based agency best known for its global campaigns for Brown Forman's Jack Daniel's whisky brand.

The agency, which has a staff of 32 and billings of $70m (£48.9m), will be rebranded under the Arnold name. No terms for the acquisition were disclosed but it is believed chairman/executive creative director Ted Simmons and president Les Diveley will continue to head up the agency.

Other clients that Arnold can now list include Eveready Battery, Milnot's Milnot Canned Milk and Chiliman Chili.

The acquisition is part of Havas's strategy to build a global network with acquisitions at home and abroad. Other recent additions include McKinney & Silver, North Carolina, and Brandhouse, a marketing agency with offices in Sydney and Melbourne.

Ed Eskandarian, chairman and chief executive officer of Boston-based Arnold Worldwide, said that he is currently targeting agencies in the UK and in Asia.

This article was first published on brandrepublic.com