Chiat/Day Loses Wine Cooler Ad Account

SCOTTSDALE — Just one day after its motorcycle client, Yamaha, roared out the door, the ad firm Chiat/Day on Thursday lost the California Cooler advertising business.

For more than five years, the San Francisco office of the Venice ad agency created numerous award-winning ads for California Cooler. The ads featured laid-back surfers making the wine cooler at the beach to the tune of the song “Louie, Louie.”

But the company that makes the wine cooler, Brown-Forman Beverage Co., awarded the ad business--along with that of several other brands--to the New York ad firm FCB/Leber Katz Partners.

Industry executives estimate that the California Cooler ad business had shrunk from a peak of $20 million about three years ago to less than $1 million in 1988.

Called a ‘Sad Day’

Memos announcing the account loss were distributed Thursday to employees at the Chiat/Day San Francisco office.

“After five plus years, and some of the best work Chiat/Day has ever done, we will no longer represent California Cooler,” the memo said.

Chiat/Day had not created any new advertisements for the wine cooler in three months, said Fred Goldberg, vice chairman of Chiat/Day, and president and chief executive of the San Francisco office.

“This is a very sad day when you consider all the great work we’ve done for California Cooler,” said Goldberg. “But the loss won’t really hurt this office.” The San Francisco office has picked up $30 million in new business this year, including the $10-million Dell Computer business, Goldberg said.

Competition in the wine cooler category--particularly Bartles & Jaymes and Seagram’s Coolers--have hurt California Cooler sales. “We were proud to help create the wine cooler category,” said Goldberg, “and to make the brand something really important.”