Top County Latino Ad Agency Loses Pac Bell Account to Irvine Newcomer

Orange County’s largest Latino ad agency has lost a $5-million Pacific Bell Latino account to an Irvine-based newcomer, Casanova Pendrill Publicidad.

Pacific Bell reached out and touched Casanova Pendrill last week, rejecting incumbents Mendola Dillon & Asociados of Newport Beach and Bermudez & Associates of Los Angeles.

With the Pac Bell account, 4-year-old Casanova Pendrill becomes the county’s No.2 Latino shop based on billings. The company said its yearly billings are about $18 million.

Mendola Dillon--the county’s biggest Latino shop--estimates its annual billings at about $35 million, said Mario Lazo Jr., a vice president. Agencies typically book 10% to 15% of their billings as revenue.

“We’re happy for them. We would have been happier for us. But our expatriates did such a hell of a fine job, they won the account,” Lazo said.

Casanova Pendrill’s president, Paul Casanova, and vice president, Viviana Pendrill, both worked with Mendola Dillon before starting their own shop. The agency moved to Irvine from Los Angeles last month.

Earlier this year, Casanova Pendrill won the California Lottery’s $4-million ethnic account. The shop also handles Latino advertising for General Mills, Frito-Lay and the Pepsi-Cola bottling group.