Land O’Lakes has appointed Battery and Havas Media as its agencies of record, the dairy brand announced on Wednesday.
Battery, a Los Angeles-based agency majority-owned by Havas, will take over creative strategy and execution for Land O’Lakes’ butter, cheese and licensee products. Havas Media will lead media buying and planning for the dairy brand.
The agencies were selected after a competitive pitch.
“What set the Battery and Havas Media pitch apart from the competition was their truly collaborative and inquisitive approach, and a creative idea that builds the Land O’Lakes brand through our product, while tying beautifully back to our unique and powerful co-op structure,” Catherine Fox, vice president of dairy foods marketing at Land O’Lakes, said in a press statement. “We couldn’t be more excited to start telling our story with this fresh new approach.”
In 2019, Havas Group acquired a majority stake in Battery, which has a specialized focus on gaming and streaming entertainment. Battery and Havas Media will collaborate on the Land O’Lakes account as part of Havas Group’s “Village” model, which combines creative and media teams together in one team.
“Battery is excited to help one of America’s premier companies look toward the future,” Anson Sowby, CEO and co-founder of Battery, said in a press statement. “Part of the creative will be focused on positioning the Land O’Lakes brand in a way that celebrates the innovation and community that underpins this structure. Collaborating closely with their teams, we will leverage the farmer-owned positioning to drive meaningful connections and help grow their business.”
The agency appointments come following the hire of Heather Malenshek, senior vice president and CMO of Land O’Lakes Inc, who joined in September 2020. Malenshek’s goal was to “elevate” the dairy brand.
Land O’Lakes has work to do on the branding front. Last year, the brand phased out its iconic logo featuring a Native American woman kneeling against a background of pine trees and a blue lake. The decision came as multiple sports teams, businesses and universities removed Native American names and symbols from their logos amid cultural appropriation backlash.
Land O’Lakes said it changed its logo ahead of its 100th anniversary to reflect its roots as a farmer-owned business. The new logo features the lake and trees with the words “Farmer Owned” printed on the side.
