• Ad Age, Friday, March 17, 2006 11:46 AM

As part of a major transformation plan, food marketer Sara Lee Corp. will consolidate creative advertising accounts for its food and beverage unit with one or possibly two agencies following a review. The work is currently being handed by a handful of agencies. Billings for the combined account will total $80 million, which includes the $21 million Hillshire Farms brands business and the $37 million Sara Lee deli and bakery account. Additional business for the Earthgrains breads brand will also be included. Omnicom's TBWA/Chiat/Day, Playa del Rey, Calif., which already handles Ball Park, Jimmy Dean and Senseo brands for Sara Lee, as well as sibling Goodby, Silverstein & Partners, San Francisco, will participate. Company spokesman Jon Harris said the consolidation of agencies is "part of an overall strategy to optimize service partnerships" and will likely help both Sara Lee and its agencies become "more effective at building distinctive brand positions across our categories and more efficient with our creative and production investments."

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