Last year was a record year for marcoms giant WPP, which posted its highest ever operating margin of 14.8%, according to a company update. But Sir Martin Sorrell, WPP's CEO, referred to the year as a hard slog. Last year was a record year for the group, but Sorrell acknowledged the difficult economic environment meant, "We got there ugly."

U.K.-based fast-feeder Pret a Manger has tapped New York indie agency Walrus for the U.S. marketing business. Walrus will handle in-store, digital, and market-specific event efforts for the chain; the marketing will focus on highlighting Pret A Manger's menu's variety. Previously U.S. marketing was handled by Pret in-house.

Forever 21 and American Apparel are based in Los Angeles, and that's where the similarities end. American Apparel boasts what its name suggests. Forever 21 subcontracts worldwide. American Apparel's founder and CEO Dov Charney is Canadian-American, has been accused of harassment of assorted kinds, and has had immigration issues. Do Won Chang, founder and CEO of Forever 21, a devoutly Christian Korean-American, puts the John 3:16 verse on every bag.

Xbox is apparently putting Interpublic's TwoFifteenMcCann in the stable vis a vis the fall campaign for XBox. Crispin Porter gets the brass ring, though TwoFifteenMcCann gets to keep AOR status and will handle work on new products plus top-tier products like Halo. Publicis Groupe's Razorfish is set to replace WPP's AKQA on digital work.

Campbell-Ewald's involvement in Chevy had been reduced to a sliver when it got replaced by Commonwealth, an agency conglomerate serving as a kind of marketing control tower for international ad flights. Now with Cadillac's account at Fallon under review, C-E may get its mojo back.

Derrick Rose is still rehabbing a knee injury suffered last season and Dwight Howard is dealing with shoulder problems and the after-effects of back surgery, but Adidas is putting attention on John Wall, who will take the lead in marketing for the brand's new CrazyQuick hoops shoe line.

The natural foods kingpin is planning an upscale health resort where guests could stay and learn about a healthier lifestyle. "We have the perfect vehicle for this," says Whole Foods co-founder John Mackey. "Think of it as a center where people would go for a day, a weekend or a week for healthy lifestyle education."

The new owners of Hostess say they're hoping to get Twinkies on store shelves by this summer. "Our family is thrilled to have the opportunity to reestablish these iconic brands with new creative marketing ideas and renewed sales efforts and investment," Daren Metropoulos, a principal at his family's private equity firm said. "We look forward to having America's favorite snacks back on the shelf by this summer." The equity firm and Apollo Global Management raised $410 million for Twinkies and other snack cakes from Hostess.

Shipments of tablets running Google Inc's Android will overtake the iPad this year for the first time, per IDC. Smaller and cheaper Android tablets from Google to Amazon.com Inc will catch on this year and chip away at Apple's dominance. While iPad and iPhone shipments are expected to grow, Samsung Electronics and others have hurt Apple with a combination of savvy marketing, greater variety and rapid technology adoption. On Thursday Samsung reveals it's fourth-gen Galaxy.

Leading up to March 1, foodservice experts speculated that the spending cuts wouldn't implode the economy immediately. Instead, they said, it would more acutely affect certain regions tied to the tourism or defense industries and put more pressure on restaurant chains in those areas. "The sequester's effect will be felt more in pockets," said restaurant industry analyst Malcolm Knapp. "The impact is likely to be staggered, so we likely will not see it right away. We just had a really good jobs number for February, but by May, maybe we won't."