Molson Breweries has rewarded MacLaren McCann for its award-winning work on its Canadian brand with the Molson Export account.

FCB Canada loses Export, but keeps the Carling and Coors Light brands.

MacLaren McCann has also taken on the Quebec business, previously with Auger Babeux FCB.

Freda Colbourne, director of corporate communications for Molson, says MacLaren McCann earned the new business because of its success with the ‘I Am’ campaign.

Colbourne says before ‘I Am,’ advertising for Canadian was radically different and that Molson wants the agency to do the same thing with Export.

‘Not ‘I Am,’ – not young and hip – but to look at a new approach to Export’s core brand values,’ she says.

The target group for Canadian is ages 19 to 24, while Export is skewed at an older 25-plus audience.

Colbourne says Molson considers Ex one of its traditional beers ‘targeted toward consumers with relaxed, comfortable lifestyles and well-established values.’

But she says the company is seeing a resurgence of the popularity of Ex with a younger group, and MacLaren’s challenge will be to reach this new group without alienating the core drinkers.

A new campaign for Export is not expected until spring of next year.