• Advertising Age, Tuesday, September 15, 2009 10:25 PM

Applebee's has moved its $150 million-plus media planning and buying account to Universal McCann without a review. The business was previously handled by Starcom. Applebee's already works with Universal McCann sibling McCann Erickson on the creative side.

The company is consolidating its media and creative responsibilities to capitalize on opportunities in the market while creating more cost efficiencies, says a rep for Dine Equity, parent company to Applebee's and IHOP, which also works with Universal McCann. The representative states that pricing was not a factor in the company's decision.

IHOP purchased Applebee's for $2.1 billion in July of 2007. Since then Applebee's and its rivals have struggled, but recent same-store sales improvements industrywide have led some experts to speculate that the sector may be recovering. In November 2008 Applebee's brought Rebeca Johnson aboard as senior VP-marketing and this year it has put a greater focus on value-deal offerings.

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