Blue Diamond Names McKinney New Creative Agency-of-Record

Blue Diamond Growers – the leading producer and marketer of almonds in the world – has selected McKinney as their agency-of-record (AOR) for all the creative work across Blue-Diamond’s consumer-facing branded business, including Blue Diamond Almond Breeze and Blue Diamond Snack Almonds. This new partnership will focus on expanding the brand's reach into more US households by showcasing the healthy, flavourful and satisfying product choices within the Blue Diamond portfolio. Aside from being a well-known and loved CPG food brand, Blue Diamond is also an agricultural cooperative owned by thousands of family farms, which makes the successful marketing of its products even more important. Throughout the pitch process, McKinney demonstrated a great understanding of the industry and how purchase decisions are made, ultimately turning simple human insights into attention-grabbing creative work. 

"When searching for a new creative agency, we knew we wanted more than just an agency. We wanted strategic partners who shared Blue Diamond Growers' values and goals. The McKinney team stood out as the best partner throughout this entire process," said Raj Joshi, senior vice president, global consumer division at Blue Diamond Growers. "Working with McKinney will enable us to showcase our commitment to excellence, innovation, and high-quality in visionary and creative ways." 

The opportunity was brought to McKinney through search consultant, SRI (Select Resources International). McKinney participated in a highly competitive, several months-long pitch process alongside some of the top creative agencies in the country, and ultimately won after being one of the four finalists. From its data-driven approach to identifying Blue Diamond’s untapped potential, to the social-first strategic thinking to team chemistry, McKinney’s Smarts & Hearts were on full display.

“We are extremely excited about our new partnership with Blue Diamond,” said Joe Maglio, CEO of McKinney. “We have a lot of passion for the food and beverage category, so the prospect of working with such a great brand and great clients was the perfect mix. There was immediate chemistry between our two sides, and as the pitch went on we already felt like we were one team. Everyone is excited to dive in and help the Blue Diamond brand and business continue to grow.” 

The account will be led out of McKinney’s LA office, with support from team members in both its Durham and NYC locations. The first campaign from McKinney and Blue Diamond is set to break in January of 2023.