• Brandweek, Monday, January 7, 2008 11:45 AM

Frito-Lay's Cheetos brand will boost its ad spend by more than 50% this year following an internal overhaul in early 2007, when it more than doubled its internal marketing team and installed former Lays marketing exec Dorothy Jones as marketing director. Spending for the new effort was not disclosed. In 2006, the brand spent $22 million on measured media and, through October 2007, had spent $8 million, per Nielsen Monitor-Plus.

Though traditionally perceived as a children's brand, consumer research during the retrenching showed that more than 60% of Cheetos consumers were over the age of 18. Moreover, 43% of all childless households were consuming the brand's products.

While the PepsiCo entity is by no means shuttering its child-focused marketing operations, it will beef up its presence on networks such as TBS, Comedy Central, Cartoon Network's Adult Swim and other late-night programming in a bid to capture 18-to49 consumers. In August, Cheetos swapped ad agency BBDO, New York,

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