• by Larissa Faw , February 10, 2021

Inspire Brands is appointing Publicis Groupe as the restaurant group’s media agency of record.

Publicis has created a dedicated unit to service the account called Inspire Media Engine, led by Publicis Groupe agencies Zenith and Digitas.

It will support national media planning and buying for Arby’s, Baskin-Robbins, Buffalo Wild Wings, Dunkin’, Jimmy John’s, and Sonic Drive-In. The remit also includes local media planning and buying for Dunkin’, Jimmy John’s, and SONIC.

Measured media tied to the assignment is estimated at $600 million.

For now, this appointment does not include national paid search or social for several brands, as those functions are either managed in-house or maintained through an outside agency partner not impacted by the review.

“While each of our brands has its own distinct positioning and identity, Inspire’s shared services approach to media enables us to leverage our collective resources to benefit the entire portfolio,” said Navin Sharma, Chief Commercial Services Officer of Inspire, in a statement. “Coupled with the investments Inspire is making in technology, digital, and data, our partnership with Publicis and Inspire Media Engine will drive significant competitive advantage for each of our brands.”

Inspire launched its agency review in August 2020 in order to consolidate its multiple brands under one umbrella partnership and better align its media approach with a focus on custom targeting, digital business, and CRM efforts.

At the time, Inspire worked with Zenith on Arby’s and Sonic, Mindshare for Buffalo Wild Wings, and Haworth on Jimmy John’s.

Inspire ranks as one of the largest U.S. restaurant companies, with more than $14 billion in annual sales and 22,000 U.S. locations.