• by Richard Whitman , Columnist, September 20, 2015

Atlanta-based Huge has partnered with local restauranteurs Karl Injex and Mouna Issa to open a coffee shop-slash Japanese restaurant. The shop will serve locally brewed coffee from Atlanta-area brewer Brash Coffee.

Of the endeavor, Huge Atlanta Managing Director Michael Kozial said: "For a long time, we've wanted to have a consumer-facing retail extension of the Huge brand and to have our own retail business. The idea of a coffee shop fits very well with the culture."

And on how the agency plans to foster connection and dialog with family, friends and consumers, Kozial added: "There's this feeling that it's really this intense pride for what we do and also why we do it and where we do it. The idea that working for Huge and being close to the Huge brand is very meaningful for all the professionals that we have in the company. And this is a way for you to invite your friends, your family, your former coworkers and other people to be a part of it in a retail way."

The agency plans to use the retail as an R&D lab of sorts; a testing ground for new ideas and a place where innovation and creativity are front and center.

As agencies continue to branch out into other areas of focus, several launching product design initiatives, one wonders who will be left to create ads when every agency is off launching a new brand of condoms or nail polish. Who's left to make the ads?

It's true that successful marketing has moved beyond the strict creation of ads or the development of compelling, informative *cough* content marketing but much of this product development trend seems like a bunch of bored ad execs sitting around wondering what to do next because they're sick and tired of doing the actual job they were hired for: make shit that sells shit. 

That's really what it boils down to. All the rest is just a distraction.

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