Jack Morton Launches New Diversity-Driven Marketing Practice: Vivi

By Chandni Maske On Mar 24, 2022

Vivi to help brands reach women of color, a $5T market, through the power of brand experience

Focuses on creating extraordinary brand experiences that celebrate the intersectionality of women, particularly women of color.
Industry and Jack Morton veteran, Bonnie Smith, to lead the charge.
Only 1 in 10 (11.23%) of women of color believe that brands do a good or great job connecting with people like them.
Vivi launches with a win: The Community Cohesion Project (CCP), a partnership between Walmart, P&G, Crystal Bridges, and other community organizations to build a more inclusive environment in Northwest Arkansas. New client adds to ongoing stable of diversity-driven work being led by the agency.

Jack Morton, the global brand experience agency, announces the launch of Vivi, a new diversity-driven specialty practice. Helmed by industry veteran Bonnie Smith, Vivi helps brands discover how, when, and where to authentically connect with women, specifically women of color, and celebrate their intersectionality.

Today, women are responsible for 80% of their household’s economic choices, and one in five Americans is a woman of color. Seeing the enormous untapped potential of this market, Jack Morton is introducing Vivi to help brands reach this audience through the power of experiential marketing.

Initial primary research conducted by Vivi, reveals that only one in 10 (11.23%) women of color believe that brands do a good or great job of connecting with people like them. And almost one-third of women of color (32%) say they are more likely to buy products and services from a brand that authentically connects with unique aspects of their individuality, identity, or culture.

Jack Morton has named industry leader and diversity champion Bonnie Smith, SVP, Group Account Director, who recently returned to the agency, as Head of Vivi. Smith is a seasoned marketer with over 20 years of experience connecting brands with women of color and diverse audiences. Smith previously founded Studio B Entertainment, an independent, female-owned and operated brand experience agency. She started her experiential career at Jack Morton and returns to continue her passion and scale Studio B’s mission.

Collectively, the two agencies possess a rich history of working with and scaling diversity initiatives for Pampers, COVERGIRL, P&G, Always, Showtime, Essence, General Motors, Meta, and more.

“Women are not one-dimensional. They are unique and vivid individuals with diverse perspectives, specific needs and lived experiences. But often, brands market to them as a monolith, especially to women of color. This needs to change if brands want to build strong connections and create lasting relationships with this audience—who are the world’s most powerful consumer,” said Bonnie Smith, head of Vivi. “I’m excited to be on this journey to lead Vivi and build an exciting collective of passionate and talented thinkers, experience architects, and cultural enthusiasts.”

Vivi launches with a new business win under its belt. The Community Cohesion Project (CCP) is an initiative created in partnership with Walmart, P&G, Crystal Bridges and other community organizations that aims to build a more welcoming and inclusive environment in Northwest Arkansas. It has selected the practice to create content for its ongoing integrated campaign, which consists of a series of live and virtual experiences that celebrate diversity and unite the community.

“If your brand doesn’t have a diversity strategy, you don’t have a growth strategy. Ensuring that diverse audiences feel valued, seen, and understood is imperative for our agency and our clients. It’s why we created Vivi,” said Josh McCall, Chairman & CEO, Jack Morton.

“Women clearly lead the charge when it comes to buying power and influence, and women of color are at the top—with the most economic control. To be successful, brands need to connect with women of color in authentic ways – it’s how brands act, not what they say, that will win loyalty. The Vivi team’s passion, combined with unsurpassed expertise will create incredible opportunities for brands to reach this audience,” continued McCall.

The Vivi team comprises client leads, production, creative, and strategy experts and specializes in brand acts and activations for consumer and B2B brands. It also has deep expertise in sponsorship marketing and employee experiences.

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