• by Larissa Faw , January 4, 2018

Del Monte Foods is appointing DonerLA as lead AOR for the vegetable and branded food producer.

Epilson served as the incumbent.

Effective immediately, the MDC Partners-owned agency will lead the brand strategic process for the Del Monte Vegetable and Contadina brands, while waiting until May 2018 to represent all brands in the portfolio, including College Inn.

The relationship encompasses strategy and creative across traditional, digital, social, web, CRM and shopper marketing.

This account win represents an intriguing pivot for the privately held Del Monte Foods.

Two years ago, Del Monte tapped Epilson as the company rethought its marketing strategy by consolidating all agencies under one shop.

"As we get lean and think about resources, it's difficult to manage a large number of agencies. We weren't getting the integration we wanted to see through the planning process, or the collaboration we wanted to see," Jennifer Reiner, senior director of omnichannel marketing and ecommerce, Del Monte Foods said at the time to Ad Age. 

However, while Epilson has bolstered its creative and traditional advertising abilities over the years, the tech- and data-driven shop is best known for its direct-marketing and data-management expertise.

"It definitely played into our decision, knowing that Epsilon has that background," Reiner said to Ad Age. "Direct and email marketing is also "an area we haven't fully developed." 

Now, it seems Del Monte seeks more creativity along with omnichannel abilities with this switch to the creative-led Doner. Citing DonerLA's "full package," Reiner stated: “The Doner team combined innovative creative thinking with strong, integrated campaign recommendations and full-service capabilities, which truly set them apart." 

Founded in 1886, Del Monte Foods’ brands collectively generate approximately $1.7 billion in annual sales and consistently hold majority or second place market share in fruit, vegetables, tomato and broth categories.  

Search consultant Select Resources, Inc. led the competitive review.