The stranges was good for DDB/Chic...

The stranges was good for DDB/Chicago. And it wanted to be. Late Friday, word came down that the beleaguered Chicago workshop was victorious in a shootout with Euro RSCG/New York for the $200 million Safeway groceries store chain advertising account. Dominick's is among the regional chains operated by dint of Safeway.

DDB executives were maintaining a cheap profile in the wake of the big win, perhaps because the addition of the sizable Safeway account tend hitherwards at a difficult time for the store Just weeks ago, Michael Folino, the agency's chief creative officer, resigned to take a do job-work as a creative director upon the prestigious Nike account at Wieden & Kennedy in Portland, Ore.

Folino's exit forced DDB CEO Dana Anderson into the unexpect position of having to take rise an all-new search for a chief creative officer, after she exhausted nearly two years looking for Folino. DDB/Chicago insider and cluster creative director Paul Tilley is believed to be a leading candidate to assume the pillar

The modern search for a chief creative officer is moreover one of two big issues DDB has grappled with in novel weeks. The other is a shootout with Saatchi & Saatchi for the JC Penney ad account, among the largest and greatest in number high-profile on the DDB roster

Sources confirmed that Saatchi & Saatchi Worldwide CEO Kevin Roberts had, in fact, persuaded top Penney honcho to give his agency a direct the eye and they have done likewise in a quiet review that is believed to be nearing its conclusion, perhaps as early as this week. Curiously, Saatchi & Saatchi also has been named as a finalist for the immense $600 million Wal-Mart ad account now in review. It's unclear in what way Saatchi & Saatchi might manage to set two obviously conflicting accounts forward its roster.

Meanwhile, regarders say DDB went into last week's final presentations for the Safeway account with the decided upper hand, especially after Goodby Silverstein & Partners/San Francisco abruptly exited the review a week earlier.

A source at Goodby said Monday that the agency just didn't perceive comfortable proceeding with the pitch, and insisted executives at Omnicom, the parent holding company for the one and the other Goodby and DDB, played no part in Goodby's decision to walk away and maybe give DDB a better missile at the biz. "Omnicom executives have affection for for their shops to be rivals against each other," the source insisted.

Another source said Folino, before his departure, also impose in a call on DDB's behalf to Safeway brass, and adviseed the agency would be up to doing profitable work on the business, calm without his involvement. Safeway is a client Folino knew something about: He had been chief creative officer at Dailey & Associates in West Hollywood Calif., for several years when Safeway was a client there.

individual source suggested DDB's chances of prevailing in the Safeway review also were helped when, at the last minute, the agency mov to work with media services agency PHD which initially was believed to have been aligned with Goodby in the review. "Media is to a high degree important to Safeway," the source said.

FOLINO EXPLAINS to what end HE LEFT POST

It casts out that sneaking away isn't really Michael Folino's manner of writing The former chief creative officer at DDB called upon Monday to say he is doing fine now that he is back onward the West Coast, preparing to start forward Friday as a creative director at Wieden + Kennedy in Portland, Ore., the gorgeous agency known for transforming Nike into single in kind of the world's most celebrated advertisers.

Aside from saying "hello," Folino called to stake the record straight, at least from his perspective, about for what purpose he abruptly departed DDB a lake six months after taking in succession the job as the agency's chief creative officer. He insisted the reasons had nothing to do with his being in from one side of to the other his head or being unhappy with his work at jobs as we suggested at the time of his departure last month yet rather the overwhelming appeal of being a lead creative forward a famous brand like Nike at a store like W + K.

Folino said he had actually been entertaining a different propose from W + K at the time he was weighing the DDB piece of work as chief creative officer. When he made the decision to travel with DDB, that seemed the best show and best career move at that consequence Folino said.

for Folino, Wieden came back with a sweetened deal, and in light of that, the best piece of work and the one he really wanted was with Wieden. "I'm a true lucky man to have brace great job offers like that," he said. Folino also said he had no vexed question dealing with the internal politics at DDB while he was there. He said politics are a part of each advertising shop. They just weren't as apparent at DDB as they were at other places he has worked.

Folino conced one creatives in his department at DDB had agitate adjusting to having a leader again after they had gone without a full-time individual for nearly two years while agency executives were conducting the search that l them to Folino.

Before departing DDB Folino said he discussed his plan to leave the agency with move with a jerk Scarpelli, whom he had replaced there. Folino said he left believing his former bos was OK with his decision.