Great Wolf Resorts, Inc. has named two award-winning marketing agencies to supercharge its already topline standing as one of the premier family getaway destinations in North America, Great Wolf officials announced.
“We are thrilled to welcome the Erich and Kallman Agency and Horizon Media to the Great Wolf pack,” said Brooke Patterson, Senior Vice President, Brand Experiences, for Great Wolf Resorts. “With Erich and Kallman developing new breakthrough creative and Horizon Media ensuring we effectively reach our core family audience, Great Wolf Lodge will accelerate itstop-of-mind awareness just as families are poised to rediscover and reconnect with each other after this past year.”
Erich and Kallman is an award-winning, independent advertising agency founded by former Crispin Porter Bogusky president Steven Erich and Wieden+Kennedy and Goodby Silverstein & Partners veteran Eric Kallman. Their strong creative pedigree and ability to quickly go to market has brought them both AOR assignments and project work for marketers including General Mills, Lucid Motors, Foster Farms, Carl’s Jr., Hershey, Meineke Car Care, Chick-fil-A, Kelly Services and New Belgium Brewery among others. They have been named to Ad Age’s A-List, awarded Gold as Ad Age’s Small Agency of The Year, named to ADWEEK’s Fastest Growing Agencies, as well as been honored by the Clio Awards, Effie Awards, David Ogilvy Awards, D&AD, AICP Awards and Cannes Lions for work with their client partners.
“We have been fans of Great Wolf Lodge long before we were asked to pitch the business” said Steve Erich, Founder and President of Erich and Kallman. “We are honored to be chosen as their creative agency and excited to be part of the team tasked to build awareness, drive growth and ultimately secure Great Wolf Lodge’s place as a one-of-a-kind, beloved family brand.”
Horizon Media, Inc. is a leader in delivering data-driven business outcomes for some of the most innovative and ambitious brands. With estimated investments of approximately $9 billion and over 2,400 employees, Horizon is the second largest U.S. media agency according to the AdAge Datacenter. Horizon Media has been named Media Agency of the Year by MediaPost, Adweek and AdAge and was recognized as one of the world’s ten most innovative marketing and advertising companies by Fast Company. Horizon Next, the nimble, data-powered division within Horizon Media, will direct the Great Wolf account through its New York office.
“We are known for our personal approach to client relationships, so partnering with Great Wolf Lodge is especially rewarding,” said Gene Turner, President of Next. “We always strive to be our client’s most valuable partner, and, with the Great Wolf team, the chemistry was instantaneous. They understood the value of our data-powered insights right away and created the space to be collaborative and engaging.”
Great Wolf Resort’s new agencies are best-in-class for bringing great ideas to life, Patterson noted, with demonstrated expertise in brand-building. Onboarding them now is well-timed, she added, as pandemic-weary families shop quality escapes for much needed bonding away from home. A recent nationwide survey conducted for Great Wolf Resorts bears that out. Ninety-five per cent of parents polled felt an overnight getaway helps unlock the impediments to spending family time together.
“After being isolated for so long, kids, parents and grandparents are eager to spend quality time venturing out together on fun-filled, close-to-home getaways,” said Patterson. “Great Wolf Lodge is perfectly positioned as a drivable, convenient getaway filled with family-friendly, entertaining, weatherproof fun – all under one roof. And, guests can visit our resorts with confidence as health and safety has been our guiding principle throughout this pandemic, and we have a robust, detailed program called our Paw Pledge that was developed with the assistance of medical experts, public health officials and sanitization specialists.”
