MDC Partners’ Doner and its Stagwell Group sidekick Code and Theory continue making inroads at Johnson & Johnson. Beyond recently winning J&J’s Johnson’s Baby and Aveeno Baby brands, Doner also has won J&J’s Lubriderm adult skincare account, the company confirmed. J&J didn’t confirm Code and Theory’s involvement, but people familiar with the matter did.
MDC and Stagwell, both led by Mark Penn, are set to merge in a deal expected to close this quarter.
Lubriderm hasn’t gotten nearly the marketing attention J&J skincare siblings Neutrogena, Aveeno or even Clean & Clear do, with almost no measured media support the past two years, per Kantar. But that’s likely to change given the new creative assignment.
Doner and Code and Theory joined the J&J roster with their 2019 win of the Listerine, Tylenol and Zyrtec accounts, then won the baby brands earlier this month after quietly picking up Lubriderm in January. Under managing partner Penn, Stagwell grew its reach within big clients like Procter & Gamble Co. after getting a foot in the door. MDC has been doing the same at J&J since Penn became the holding company’s chairman-CEO in 2019.
Born in 2001, Code and Theory is a digital-first creative agency that sits at the center of creativity and technology. With a global client roster of Fortune 100s and start-ups alike, we crave the hardest problems to solve and create end-to-end solutions that flex to meet the needs of today’s ever-changing business landscape.
Our Services
We provide a range of offerings built to support the entire ecosystem.
Data, Research & Testing
Our data-driven approach enables us to understand every aspect of end-to-end consumer journeys, and powers our work from start to finish.
Business, Consulting & Design Transformation
We work with our clients not only to define and deliver products, services and communications, but also to design the business itself.
Transformational Technology
We help our clients reinvent their technical infrastructure and roadmap in order to deliver for the needs of today and tomorrow.
Services, Platforms & Products
We create best-in-class platforms built around both the user and the business goals, often extending into connected physical expressions.
Integrated Marketing
We deliver the right messages to new and existing customers across the entire ecosystem.
Join Our Team
We're not typical, and neither are you. We're always looking to hire smart, interesting and forward-thinking people.
Code and Theory is a proud member of Stagwell Group. Stagwell is the challenger network built to transform marketing. We deliver scaled creative performance for the world’s most ambitious brands, connecting culture-moving creativity with leading-edge technology to harmonize the art and science of marketing. Led by entrepreneurs, our 13,000+ specialists in 34+ countries are unified under a single purpose: to drive effectiveness and improve business results for their clients. Join us at www.stagwellglobal.com
