Arnold Worldwide Appoints Wade Devers And Pete Johnson As Creative Lead Partners For Boston Office

The Executive Creative Directors Combine Digital and Design Expertise

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Sep 03, 2013, 04:14 ET

BOSTON, Sept. 3, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Arnold Worldwide announced today the appointment of Wade Devers and Pete Johnson, executive creative directors, as creative lead partners for its Boston operations. Johnson, formerly senior vice president, group creative director has been elevated to executive creative director and Devers has served as executive creative director since February. The pair currently leads creative across the office's primary accounts and adds to that remit the leadership of the creative capability and the development of its talent. Both will report to Pam Hamlin, President, Arnold Worldwide in Boston.

(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20130903/NE73077-a)

(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20130903/NE73077-b)

"Wade and Pete are both exemplary leaders in the prime of their careers. They're adept at creating big conceptual ideas and inspiring the best work from others," said LePlae. "This is an evolution we've desired, partnering our leading digital and design talents."

The duo is recognized for idea-driven creative with deep expertise digital and design with a focus on craftsmanship. This combination inspires risk-taking and influences new approaches to creative and design work.

Devers, having joined the agency in 1999, has been responsible some of the agency's most iconic brands. His role as global creative director on the Jack Daniel's family of brands has led to successes such as the launch of Jack Daniels' Tennessee Honey which was the No.1 new spirit brand launched in the calendar year of 2011*. Johnson, since joining the agency in 2012 has driven a deeper collaborative partnership of creative and digital to drive large-scale conceptual campaigns rooted in technology.

"Wade has been a influential leader in Boston for a long time and Pete's contributions since coming onboard last year have been outstanding," said Hamlin. "Their complementary backgrounds make them a powerful creative force and I can wait to see their influence emerge in our work for clients."

Earlier in the year, Devers was elevated to executive creative director and his remit expanded to include executive creative leadership of a number of key clients accounts and revamping the agency's design practice as an industry best-in-class capability.

The dual appointment succeeds the role of Pete Favat who served as chief creative officer for the Boston office.

Wade Devers
Devers joined Arnold Worldwide in 1999 to work on Converse and has since led the creative efforts for multiple Fortune 500 brands in his tenure. Currently, he is the global account director on the Jack Daniel's family of brands and leads creative for accounts including CVS and Fidelity. His work has been recognized by the industry's most prestigious creative shows, including Cannes, D&AD, One Show and ANDY. Devers began his career at Leonard Monahan Lubars & Partners in Providence, RI.

Pete Johnson
Johnson joined Arnold Worldwide as senior vice president, group creative director focusing on digital and integrated campaigns. He joined from LBi New York where he helped transform the creative merger of independent agencies such as Icon Nicholson, Syrup, Lost Boys and Special Ops into one digitally focused, integrated creative shop. Prior to his time at LBi, Johnson served as creative director at Tribal DDB and before that, senior copywriter at Ogilvy & Mather and McCann Erickson.

This announcement comes on the heels of the appointment of Corey Mitchell, former MRM and TBWA executive, as president of Arnold Worldwide in New York

*Source: Nielsen; measured from both dollar and cases sold

About Arnold Worldwide  
Arnold Worldwide is a global communications company proud to represent a diverse portfolio of clients including Aetna, Carnival Cruise Lines, CVS/pharmacy, Fidelity Investments, The Hershey Company, Huntington Bank, Jack Daniel 's, Kohler, Milk-Bone, New Balance, Ocean Spray, Progressive, Sanofi, Titleist, truth®, Tyson Foods, Unilever, University of Phoenix, Vertex, Volvo and many other great brands. Arnold delivers services across all communication touch points – advertising, digital, promotions, direct, design, branded content – and is part of Havas Creative with offices in Amsterdam, Boston, Lisbon, London, Madrid, Melbourne, Milan, Moscow, New York, Prague, Sao Paulo, Shanghai, Sydney, Toronto and Washington DC. www.arnoldworldwide.com