Florida advertising and marketing agency Bluewater has entered the West Coast with a Santa Monica office.
The firm, which handles direct-to-consumer campaigns for companies, began the Los Angeles-area operation with the team of Bernadette Abasta, Michael Pierce and Julie DelCarmen earlier in the year and solidified it with the addition of Patrick Raymond in July. The initial trio were poached from Sherman Oaks-based River Direct, while Raymond individually worked on a freelance basis for years.
“Patrick and I have worked together for a number of years, so I recruited him pretty heavily,” Pierce, now vice president of new business, said.
In direct-to-consumer advertising, the company curates targeted advertising through digital and broadcast avenues. In years past, Bluewater worked with PepsiCo Inc. after it acquired and introduced Israeli manufacturer SodaStream International to the U.S. market. It has also worked with Utah grill and cooking appliance manufacturer Blackstone Products.
In joining Bluewater, Pierce said his team sought to combine that traditional company clientele with the internet-based companies they were used to working with.
“We’re developing a new pipeline of different clients. Traditionally, Bluewater blossomed in direct response advertising,” he said. “We have been more focused on ecommerce-based clients that look to go to TV because they’ve peaked in the digital space. The reason why TV is valuable is that it hits everybody everywhere, so it’s a big driver of growth.”
Raymond, now the vice president of creative strategy and execution, brings with him a wealth of experience working on campaigns for Texas personal care products company Luminess, Iowa business consulting firm Innovation Refunds and Wolfgang Puck.
On top of Santa Monica and its headquarters, Bluewater also has offices in Pennsylvania, North Carolina, the U.K. and Spain.
