john st. has just opened the doors to its new shop, john jr., with the tagline ‘an agency for the kids, by the kids.’ ‘When we looked into advertising to children,’ says Angus Tucker, co-creative director of john st., ‘we realized we didn’t really have the expertise in house to do great work. A quick trip to the top creative kindergarten programs fixed that.’
‘The benefits of working with a child staff were apparent right away,’ says co-CD Stephen Jurisic. ‘They work for peanuts, I mean literally, they will work for unshelled peanuts. You gotta watch out for allergies, but otherwise, it’s great.’
8 key insights from john jr.’s planning dept.
1 Silly Bandz-vertising
2 Giraffes
3 Eating paste
4 Cross promotions
5 Culture jammers
6 Psychographics
7 Pokémon
8 Augmented napping
john jr.’s new creative guru: An interview with john jr.’s elusive creative director Billy Strumbuck
Following on the heels of his success creating the ‘pink pony birthday movement’ for Chelsea Bedano’s eighth birthday, Billy Strumbuck has been chosen to head up the creative department at john jr. He took time out of his busy schedule to sit down with strategy.
How many years have you been in advertising?
Two.
How many years have you been on the planet?
Six.
What’s your favourite animal?
A giraffe.
