For immediate release
September 28, 2006
TOURISM TORONTO NAMES NEW AD AGENCY TO CARRY THE TORONTO STORY TO THE WORLD
TORONTO, ON – Tourism Toronto announced today that it has named Leo Burnett Canada as its new lead marketing agency working with Starcom Mediavest Group as its media partner.
“The Leo Burnett team – its people and ideas – stood out as the ideal partner to help us present Toronto as an inspiring urban destination in a highly competitive environment,” said Bruce MacMillan, President and CEO of Tourism Toronto.
In making its selection, Tourism Toronto noted Leo Burnett’s integrity and longevity with clients and its strong level of integration.
“We recognized their strong record of carrying big ideas through a wide range of executions – print and broadcast advertising, online and events,” said Joel Peters, Tourism Toronto’s Chief Marketing Officer.
Launched last year, Toronto’s new “Unlimited” brand platform is built around presenting Toronto as a creative city energized by diverse and open-minded people.
“This is a dream assignment for any ad agency, and we’re thrilled to have earned the right to work with Tourism Toronto” said David Moore, President and CEO of Leo Burnett Canada. “Toronto has all the elements it needs to succeed in attracting visitors, and we’re excited to help get that story told.”
Today’s announcement concludes a formal agency review process by Tourism Toronto. The planned three-year review was undertaken, in part, to consolidate agency relationships with a single marketing partner. Tourism Toronto retained Level 5 Strategic Brand Advisors to advise on the search process and help focus the search criteria and candidates.
“The tourism industry faces a profoundly changing marketplace. Traditional markets are in decline while new markets are emerging and showing long-term promise. We believe we have the right team to spark curiosity in new markets and reignite our base to build a more robust tourism business for our members and community,” said MacMillan.
About Tourism Toronto
Tourism Toronto, Toronto’s Convention and Visitors Association, is an industry association of more than 1,000 members established to strategically sell and market the Greater Toronto Region as a remarkable destination for tourists, convention delegates and business travelers around the globe. For more information on Tourism Toronto, please visit, www.torontotourism.com.
About Leo Burnett Worldwide
Founded in Chicago in 1935 with eight employees and three clients, Leo Burnett Worldwide, Inc. today operates a global network of over 200 operating units including a variety of specialty marketing services and 94 full-service advertising agencies in 83 countries. Leo Burnett helps build many of the world's most valuable brands and successful marketers, including McDonald's, Disney, Procter & Gamble, Marlboro, Wrigley, Heinz, Kellogg, Samsung and Nintendo.
The world’s eighth largest agency network (as ranked by Advertising Age in May 2006), Leo Burnett Worldwide is a wholly owned subsidiary of Publicis Groupe (www.publicis.com), and includes Arc Worldwide (www.arcworldwide.com) amongst its holdings.
For more information contact:
Andrew Weir Margaret Arnold
Vice President, Communications SVP Operations
Tourism Toronto Leo Burnett Canada
(416) 987-1741 (416) 928-3602
aweir@torcvb.com Margaret.arnold@leoburnett.ca