• by Steve McClellan  @mp_mcclellan, October 16, 2017

Whole Foods Market has selected MullenLowe, part of Interpublic, to be its new creative agency, according to sources.

The agency declined comment, and the client didn’t respond to confirmation queries. That may be due to the fact that while the selection has been made, a definitive contract has not been finalized as of this posting, per sources.

The company spent $96 million on advertising in fiscal 2016, according to its latest annual report. An estimated $65 million is earmarked for media.

The creative review began in June, the same month the upscale grocery chain agreed to be acquired by Amazon.

Late last year, Whole Foods launched a media agency review that concluded in January with the selection of WPP’s MediaCom. Omnicom’s GSD&M had previously handled media duties for the firm, which did not have a creative AOR incumbent.

The media review came just a short time after Whole Foods hired a new global vice president of marketing, Sonya Gafsi Oblisk. Previously a top marketing executive with Walmart, Oblisk leads Whole Foods marketing, advertising and brand development efforts.  

Last year, with same-store sales declining more than expected, Whole Foods executives told analysts on an earnings call that the company would embrace a more aggressive marketing plan.  

“We are ramping up our marketing behind digital coupons, in some markets stepping up mailings to people’s homes,” John Mackey, cofounder and co-CEO of Whole Foods Market, said during the call. “That marketing is the next big step. We can lower prices here and there, but if people don’t know about them, we won’t get the full lift.”

SRI was hired to help manage the creative pitch.