Alaska Airlines names Mekanism AOR

Alaska Airlines has named award-winning agency, Mekanism, its new advertising agency of record. Mekanism has more than 100 employees across offices in San Francisco and New York, and key clients that include Pepsi, MillerCoors, Ben & Jerry’s, Charles Schwab, The North Face and the White House.

Among its other Seattle clients are Amazon, Nordstrom Rack and Starbucks. The agency plans to open Mekanism Seattle this month.

“As we look to grow our Seattle hub and expand into new markets, now is the time to execute on a new creative campaign that complements our newly refreshed brand,” said Sangita Woerner, vice president of marketing for Alaska Airlines. “Mekanism’s strategic approach to delivering breakthrough creative and mastery of digital advertising set them apart. We’re looking forward to partnering with them to further differentiate Alaska Airlines.”

Founded in 2000, Mekanism has been named to several Ad Age A-lists including its coveted Creativity Top 50 creative companies, and has won dozens of industry awards. In addition, Mekanism has been profiled by The New York Times, Fast Company and ABC’s “Nightline.” Its 2014 Super Bowl ad for Pepsi was rated among USA Today’s “Super Bowl Top 10 Ad Meter” winners.

“This is a momentous time for Alaska, with their first brand refresh in 25 years,” said Pete Caban, partner at Mekanism. “We are incredibly excited to roll-up our sleeves and begin working with this much-loved and iconic brand. Our new Seattle office will put us on the ground locally to support our Alaska partnership, while also providing opportunities for growth amongst the numerous blue chip businesses in the region.”

Alaska recently unveiled a new brand identity and refresh created by global brand agency Hornall Anderson. The revamp, announced last week, includes a new signature wordmark, logo, color palette, and graphic language.