Our Sales Leads column discusses the latest brand and media agency initiatives. View past columns in the archives here.
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Kimberly-Clark Buys Kenvue
Kimberly-Clark Corp. has agreed to buy Kenvue, the maker of Tylenol, in a deal valued at about US $40 billion. The cash-and-stock deal has an enterprise value of about US $48.7 billion and will create one of the country’s biggest consumer health goods companies. The companies said that the combined business will bring together 10 billion-dollar brands and will drive annual revenue of $32 billion. Kenvue has struggled since spinning off from Johnson & Johnson just over two years ago. On Monday, Kenvue reported an overall sales decline of 4.4%, as well as its its self care unit, which includes Tylenol, falling 5.3% for the quarter ending on September 28. Kenvue’s 2024 advertising spending is estimated at US $1.6 billion, with US1.35 billion for 2023 according to the company’s 2023 earnings report.
Kenvue recently launched a global media and creative agency review. Formerly the Consumer Healthcare division of Johnson & Johnson,[3] Kenvue owns well-known brands such as Aveeno, Band-Aid, Benadryl, Combantrin, Zyrtec, Johnson’s, Listerine, Lactaid, Mylanta, Neutrogena,, Trosyd, Calpol, Tylenol,[and Visine. Kenvue’s current agency roster includes Interpublic Group of Cos. and Publicis Groupe globally in media, plus Interpublic’s FCB and Deutsch, and Omnicom’s. Omnicom and IPG are teaming up on the Kenvue pitch, Adage reported. WPP and Publicis Groupe are also competing in the Tylenol marketer’s pitch.
It is unclear how Kenvue’s acquisition by Kimberly-Clark will affect Kenvue’s agency pitches. Earlier this year, Kimberly-Clark announced that it had wrapped up its global creative and media review, splitting the creative work between IPG and WPP, with Omnicom managing media outside the U.S. For the US, Publicis will continue as Kimberly-Clark’s media partner.
” The deal brings together 10 billion-dollar brands and will drive annual revenue of US $32 billion.“
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Sephora Mariah Carey Partnership
The holidays have officially begun, and no one does them quite like Mariah Carey. On November 1, the undisputed Queen of Christmas and best-selling female artist of all time rings in the season with a glamorous new partnership with Sephora, uniting her signature sparkle with Sephora’s beauty expertise. As the clock struck midnight, Mariah declared “It’s Time!” in her much-anticipated annual video – this year, reimagined in collaboration with Sephora to bring fans a dazzling fusion of beauty and holiday magic.
Directed by Joseph Kahn, the cinematic video premiered across Mariah and Sephora’s Instagram accounts and on Sephora’s Times Square billboard, marking the official shift from Halloween to holiday for millions of fans worldwide. Set inside Mariah’s Sephora-branded glam room, the scene unfolds as a mischievous elf, played by Billy Eichner, tries to steal her beloved beauty essentials and derail the holiday festivities. In classic Mariah fashion, she triumphantly declares “It’s Time!” and takes off in a dazzling sleigh, soaring through a Sephora-inspired winter wonderland aglow with festive magic. “The holidays are a time to celebrate and spread joy, I’m so excited to kick off the season with Sephora,” said Mariah Carey. “It’s all about creating those magical moments that make you feel glamorous from the inside out.”
“Our holiday campaign this year celebrates the notion of ‘glimmers’ – those small moments of joy that a gift of beauty brings – and there is no one that better embodies that sentiment than Mariah Carey during the holiday season,” said Zena Arnold, Chief Marketing Officer at Sephora. “Mariah’s ‘It’s Time’ video is a cultural phenomenon that reaches consumers in a joyful, creative, and highly shareable way, and this partnership enables us to amplify the festive spirit and be at the center of celebration and fun.” The “It’s Time” video release coincides with the start of Sephora’s annual “Give Something Beautiful” Campaign, and the awaited Sephora Savings Event (which runs through November 10), where beauty lovers can score great deals on Sephora’s most-loved products, plus scoop up exclusive, limited-edition holiday gift sets for everyone on their list. Also available to shop on Sephora.com: a curated selection of Mariah’s favorite beauty products.
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Jeep ®
“Wild Thoughts,” the new marketing campaign from the Jeep® brand, reintroduces the 2026 Jeep Grand Cherokee – the most awarded SUV ever – through creative developed specifically for social media content. Blending humor and craftsmanship, the two-plus-minute “Wild Thoughts” film turns the spotlight over to nature’s own critics – talking animals who deliver unfiltered reviews of the Grand Cherokee’s standout features. “Our ‘Wild Thoughts’ campaign for the new 2026 Jeep Grand Cherokee was developed with a playful tone designed for social media consumption,” said Olivier Francois, global chief marketing officer, Stellantis. “In this instance, we decided to let nature do the talking for one of the world’s most iconic adventure brands and the most awarded SUV ever, using humor to cleverly call out the Jeep Grand Cherokee’s capability and luxury in a memorable way. While we launch with a long-form reveal video, the creative seamlessly allows shorter cut-downs to run across social media channels that will focus specifically on each animal/attribute of the Jeep Grand Cherokee, widening the scope and appeal of the campaign.” The 2026 Jeep Grand Cherokee is the second of four new vehicles launching from the Jeep brand in North America in the second half of this year, joining the all-new 2026 Jeep Cherokee, new 2026 Jeep Grand Wagoneer and all-electric Jeep Recon. Production of the 2026 Jeep Grand Cherokee will take place at both Stellantis’ Detroit Assembly Complex Jefferson and Mack plants. Prices for the new Hurricane 4 Turbo-powered Jeep Grand Cherokee will be announced at a later date. This campaign was created in partnership with Chicago-based advertising agency, Highdive. The brand also recently launched a marketing campaign that gives consumers the chance to turn MONOPOLY Money into real savings. Through November 3, the brand launched its MONOPOLY Bonus Cash Allowance program in collaboration with Hasbro, a leading games, IP and toy company, where customers can bring $500 in MONOPOLY Money into dealerships to apply toward a new 2025 Jeep Grand Cherokee. Last week, the Jeep brand revealed another social-media-only creative effort, “Family SUV,” starring comedian Iliza Shlesinger for the new 2026 Jeep Grand Wagoneer.
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Best Buy
Best Buy announced a holiday marketing campaign. “Whether it’s celebrating your team winning on Thanksgiving, enjoying the newest movie release, or unwrapping the perfect gift, we know the important moments together make the holidays special,” said Jennie Weber, chief marketing and design officer at Best Buy. The campaign includes, TV, digital and social media platforms, and sports sponsorships. Best Buy is partnering with “Binging With Babish,” a content creator who brings his love of films and food to life for his millions of followers. Host Andrew Rea will be creating and showing off movie theme dishes from Minecraft, SpongeBob and National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation movies, all while using Best Buy tech as his sous chef. The retailer is also partnering with“Hot Ones,” one of the most popular talk shows on YouTube, for the first time. When you tune in to the Thanksgiving and holiday extravaganza, host Sean Evans and personality Camera Guy Bill will sub the side of sauce for a side of tech. In all, Best Buy is partnering with more than 200 influencers to inspire holiday shopping. According to the press release, Best Buyt will also have ad spots running during 30 different NFL games this holiday, including on Thanksgiving Day during the Cincinnati Bengals vs. Baltimore Ravens game. Special ad spots are planned on on Christmas Day during both of Netflix’s NFL. In addition, Best Buy will also be showing up on platforms like ESPN, Peacock and Telemundo, where passionate fans of professional basketball and soccer turn the channel to at game time.
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Dole Food Company
Dole Food Company announced a new partnership with Minecraft, the world’s most popular video game, to inspire healthier lifestyles through interactive play, education and fruit-fueled fun. Launched last October, the multi-phase global campaign marks the first time Dole will debut a marketing initiative simultaneously across North America and Europe. At the heart of this partnership is the shared vision of enabling all generations to be healthier.
The campaign, called “Make the World a Healthier Place,” will run from October 2025 through March 2026 in the USA, Canada, Germany, Italy, Greece, and the Netherlands. It will emphasize how nutritious foods provide the energy needed for daily performance and play, while also offering accessible education on healthy eating habits, hydration, and overall nutrition. All resources will be available through Dole.com and a dedicated landing page at Dole.com/minecraft. At the heart of the campaign is an exclusive Minecraft Character item where players can unlock a Dole Banana Hoodie for their in-game character by visiting Dole.com/minecraft by digitally uploading a DOLE® Banana sticker or DOLE® Pineapple tag. The landing page will also include a Dole Peel-and-Play digital sticker collection sheet, downloadable activity sheets, coloring pages, pixel-fun fruit masks, Minecraft-inspired recipes, and even a bingo game. To extend the experience beyond the screen, Dole will release two waves of limited-edition banana stickers and a pineapple tag featuring fan-favorite Minecraft characters. Wave one, running from October through March, will highlight icons such as Steve, Alex, the creeper, the Enderman, and the chicken jockey, while wave two, launching in mid-December, will introduce the sheep, ocelot, bee, wolf, and zombie. “This partnership with Minecraft represents an exciting new step in Dole’s mission to inspire families worldwide to make the world a healthier place,” said William Goldfield, director of corporate communications for Dole Food Company. “By blending fun, creativity, and education, we are connecting with a new generation of consumers in a way that feels natural and exciting. We want to show kids not only where their food comes from and how it is grown, but also how the right foods can fuel their adventures, whether in the game or in real life.”
The collaboration between Dole and Minecraft will continue to expand beyond the first phase, with new opportunities for engagement designed to further reinforce the connection between healthy eating and imaginative play. Together, the two brands are committed to helping people around the world build better habits and a healthier future—one block and one banana at a time. Check out MORE RECENT MARKETING MOVES from Dole Food Company!
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Snap
New Engen, a digital marketing agency, has been selected by Snap Inc. as its creative partner to deliver authentic, market-specific campaigns across the U.S. and international markets. The partnership builds on Snap’s global creative footprint, blending in-app activations with regional content to support both growth and engagement. Through the partnership, Snap will tap New Engen’s in-house content studio, Donut Studios, for its expertise in building scaled, creator-driven campaigns that resonate with diverse audiences. The work spans both in-app and cross-channel creative — from developing new video concepts with regional creators in global markets, to remixing Snap-native content for extended impact, to designing in-app activations that deepen engagement. In addition, New Engen will lead creative insights and analytics for user acquisition campaigns, helping inform Snap’s growth and retention strategy while ensuring campaigns can launch quickly and precisely. The engagement is designed to support Snap’s dual goals of new customer acquisition and long-term retention, with a focus on strengthening daily engagement. To achieve this, New Engen is leading a significant global talent acquisition effort, uniting its U.S. creative team with regional creators worldwide to ensure content reflects authentic local voices. This cultural fluency, paired with executional agility, will help Snap connect with audiences in ways that feel real and relevant, while preserving the platform’s iconic brand identity and visual consistency across every market. “Snap’s community values content that feels real, relevant, and instantly recognizable. Partnering with New Engen allows us to scale that authenticity across markets while preserving the iconic brand identity our users know and love,” said Rahul Adwalpalkar, Product Marketing Manager at Snap Inc. “Their global creative capabilities and innovative approach will help us connect with audiences in new ways and build even stronger connections worldwide.”TJX, the parent company of retailers like T.J. Maxx, Marshalls, and HomeGoods, has selected Publicis to handle its media buying and planning account. WPP Media previously managed TJX. They spent under $100 million on advertising in digital and national TV in the last year.
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LG&E
LG&E, (Louisville Gas & Electric) a natural gas provider to Kentucky and Virginia, has launched “Spooky Signs” — a Halloween-themed extension of its natural gas safety campaign. The campaign, from agency Doe-Anderson, uses seasonally themed visuals to raise awareness of the signs of a gas leak. “Gas leaks are really scary, but learning the signs doesn’t have to be,” notes Britt Riley, executive creative director at Doe-Anderson. “We brought our gas safety characters back for Halloween and spoofed horror movie posters as a fun way to keep safety top of mind.” The campaign introduces striking movie theater-like posters alongside other seasonal content to capture attention and remind the public to stay alert for potential gas leaks. Riley adds “We wanted to build on the success of our first gas safety campaign and find a new way to keep people engaged. Halloween felt like the perfect time to have some fun with it while still getting across an important message about safety.”
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- Omnichannel integration: Delivers seamless communication across mobile apps, websites, email, SMS and more.
- Real-time personalization: Tailors offers to individual customer behavior and eligibility, reducing frustration and increasing satisfaction.
- Operational efficiency: Centralizes campaign workflows in a single platform and reduces lead times.
Learn about Portada events scheduled for 2026. Portada events are highly curated events. Their agenda is designed to maximize knowledge-sharing and networking among top brand marketers, media agencies, and media executives.
Portada Chicago, March 19, 2026
Portada Live, CDMX, Abril 16,
Portada Los Angeles, June 4
Portada Live, NYC, September 17
To learn more about thought leadership and networking solutions for the above events, please get in touch with Marcos Baer at [email protected].
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Tango
In a fiercely competitive telecom market, Tango, a leading consumer brand under Proximus Luxembourg, faced a challenge: how to deliver personalized, omnichannel marketing in a small but fast-growing and multicultural country. With fragmented tools, siloed data and limited real-time capabilities, Tango’s marketing team found it increasingly difficult to orchestrate campaigns that resonated with customers and delivered measurable results. Moving to SAS Customer Intelligence 360, Tango has unified its marketing operations, personalized customer journeys and boosted campaign performance. A recent use case showed a 50% increase in retention campaign effectiveness. “This is more than a technology upgrade – it’s a new way of doing marketing,” said Marina Hellé, Head of Customer Operations at Tango. “We’re integrating new channels, working in real time and personalizing messages with greater precision. SAS Customer Intelligence 360 allows us to speak the right way, at the right time, on the right channel – with more impact and less effort.”
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Beachwaver Company
Beachwaver Co., an independent, women-owned hair care and styling brand, is teaming up with 32 phenomenal female-founded brands for a month of daily, exclusive drops designed to empower shoppers and spotlight women in business. Starting November 1st, The Beachwaver Co. will debut a new, limited-edition holiday bundle every single day on Beachwaver.com. Each bundle is a unique collaboration, featuring award-winning Beachwaver tools and products paired exclusively with 32 participating female-founded and women-owned businesses. These daily drops offer shoppers exclusive gifts-with-purchase and deals designed to support and celebrate the power, creativity, and innovation of women in business. She Sleighs is all about empowering and supporting female founders – and spreading joy while doing it. We are thrilled to bring our community shoppable holiday bundles that truly tell a story that they can share with their loved ones. Shoppers are encouraged to follow daily and shop early as quantities are extremely limited for these one-of-a-kind bundles.
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Behr Paint
Behr Paint Company, one of the largest paint brands for both DIYers and professionals, has selected Huge, a global design and technology company, to redesign Behr.com. The redesign is currently underway, with the launch of the new web experience planned for 2026. This collaboration marks a pivotal step in Behr’s ongoing commitment to innovation and consumer-centric solutions. The redesigned site will deliver a more modern and intuitive approach, helping consumers find project inspiration, select the right color and products, and access expert resources to use throughout their personalized experience. Bringing this expertise to life, Huge will lead a full-scale transformation of Behr.com, modernizing both the front- and back-end infrastructure and introducing personalized, AI-powered tools that guide users through the design-to-purchase journey. The goal is to evolve Behr.com into a full-service platform that supports consumers from inspiration to project completion. “Our website needs to be more than a brand destination,” said Andy Lopez, SVP & Head of Global Marketing at Behr Paint Company. “It should be an ongoing source of project inspiration and a trusted guide in the paint journey process to boost consumer confidence at every step of a project. With Huge’s expertise in creativity, data, and technology, we’ve found the right partner to help us lead this digital transformation.”
