PETCO and The Phelps Group go BIG!!

When the marketing team at PETCO, the second largest pet specialty retailer in the country, and The Phelps Group, the company's ad agency for more than nine years, got together this fall to discuss PETCO's new television advertising campaign, both parties agreed on three things: 1) the campaign needed to evolve in strategy to focus on caring PETCO associates; 2) it needed to be exciting and attention-grabbing; and 3) it needed to be big. But not just "big." BIG!

The result? PETCO "EXTRA CARE" - a series of four :30 second TV spots featuring a 25-foot tall cat condo, an 8-foot high by 6-foot wide KONG dog toy, and a 20-foot high by 40-foot wide aquarium complete with virtual tropical fish. Oh yes, let's not forget the 7-1/2-foot in diameter hamster ball.

"Our previous campaign, 'PET PAMPERERS,' which has been running since 2001, demonstrated the great love that exists between PETCO customers and their pets," said Stan Latacha, PETCO's Vice President of Marketing and Advertising. "It has been tremendously successful, contributing to 47 consecutive quarters of plus 4.6% comp store sales or higher - a retail sales record.

"In addition, research showed that the campaign's theme line, 'PETCO, Where The Pets Go,' has higher awareness than Wal-Mart's, the world's largest retailer with 20 times the media weight," Latacha added.

The challenge facing the agency and PETCO was: how do you top that?

Research conducted over the summer showed that pet lovers respond better to a positive message about PETCO associates and the special care they give pets. As a result, The Phelps Group got to work developing multiple creative campaigns until they hit on "The Big One." The PETCO team included Chief Strategist Mark Johnson, Team Leader Jay Metzger, Creative Director Howie Cohen, Art Director Mike Cunningham, Copywriter Tom Rector, Producer Shari Becker and Team Manager Frank Ramirez.

Working hand-in-hand with Latacha and his team at PETCO, including Director of Marketing and Advertising Anthony Price, and National Advertising Manager Brenda Voorting, The Phelps Group devised a strategy focusing on the "EXTRA CARE" provided by every PETCO associate. "The key message we wanted to get across was that 'PETCO associates love pets just as much as the customer, and this love of pets translates into better care for your pet'," Cohen noted.

"We liked this strategy because it totally fits with what we're all about at PETCO," added Latacha. "Our sales associates live and breathe pets. There isn't any limit to the lengths that a PETCO associate will go to to ensure that your pet gets the best products and care possible."

After months of intensive concepting and pre-production work, The Phelps Group was ready to begin. Production of four :30 second spots began in September and continued for two months.

The creative concept was to design familiar pet items such as a hamster ball, a cat condo, a KONG toy for dogs and a fish tank to human scale so they could, accommodate PETCO sales associates. "Our idea was to show PETCO associates in the same situations as the animals they care for," explained Cohen. "The message was clear: no one knows and cares about your pet like PETCO."

The Phelps Group hired Los Angeles production company TOMBO to create the props and do the filming. Robert Levy of Why Not Coco was hired for editing and other post-production chores, along with Steele VFX, Santa Monica, to create the special effects. Eggplant, Toronto, was hired to create the score for the ads.

Three of the four spots, including "Hamster Ball," "KONG" and "Cat Condo," were shot after hours at a PETCO store in West Hills, CA. The fourth spot, "Aquarium," was shot both in the store and at a swimming pool in Bellflower, CA. The most complex and time-intensive of the four, "Aquarium" incorporated a number of computer generated images to create the illusion of a PETCO associate swimming in the aquarium with real fish. In reality, no fish were used; CGI created them for the spot.

Steele VFX had to employ artists, a model maker and other talent to create, texturize and color the exotic fish in the "Aquarium" spot. Thanks to CGI, life-like fish were created over the course of three weeks to "swim" with the PETCO associate. The actor playing that part actually swam solo and CGI did the rest.

"Our most challenging job was getting the props like the hamster ball and KONG toy to look real in the store environment," said Producer Becker. "We knew they had to be something that the shoppers could identify with and find in their local store." Added Cohen, "It was our most ambitious shoot ever for PETCO, and it worked beautifully."

The client also was pleased. "We've created dozens of TV commercials for PETCO, but never anything to match the size and scope of these spots - in props, special effects and overall complexity," said Latacha. "We're extremely pleased with the new campaign, and believe it will show more clearly than ever that PETCO is the place to shop for the love and care you want for your pets."

The new PETCO "EXTRA CARE" spots air nationally December 29.

Based in Santa Monica, with another office in Laguna Beach, Calif., The Phelps Group is an integrated marketing communications firm offering public relations, advertising, direct response, promotions, strategic alliance and interactive services. Its clients include PETCO, ARAMARK, Tahiti Tourism, Countrywide, City of Hope, Fairmont Hotels, Great American Group, NuSil Technology, Panasonic, Whole Foods Markets, Dunn-Edwards Paints, Monrovia Growers and divisions of TDK and Seiko. The agency has more than 70 associates and annual billings in excess of $60 million.

# # # # #