Seven From TBWA Chiat / Day Jump Ship for Upstart Agency

An upstart Chicago advertising agency has lured seven senior employees from TBWA Chiat/Day to staff its new Los Angeles office.

Four of the people going to Leap Partnership had worked on the award-winning Energizer bunny campaign. But TBWA Chiat/Day said that Energizer, a unit of Ralston Purina Co., assured them the $60-million account wasn’t in danger.

Leap Partnership said Steve Rabosky, one of TBWA Chiat/Day’s creative stars, and account director Carisa Bianchi, will co-manage its Los Angeles office. Joining them are art director Chris Graves, copywriter Erik Moe, account planners Steve Le Neveu and Lorraine Ketch and account supervisor Steve Erich.

The exodus is the latest involving senior people from TBWA Chiat/Day, formed in a merger two years ago and one of the nation’s largest ad agencies. In August, Marty Cooke, architect of the Fruitopia kaleidoscope campaign, left. Before that, Steve Sweitzer, creator of the Home Savings ads, went to Hal Riney & Partners.

Bob Kuperman, head of TBWA Chiat/Day-North America, said there is no connection between the departures. He said employees joining Leap Partnership were displeased with a reorganization of the agency’s Los Angeles office. He would not provide specifics.

But Rabosky said he was not unhappy at TBWA Chiat/Day, where he had worked for 14 years.

“If there was any dissatisfaction on a fundamental scale, I would have left a long time ago,” he said.

Leap Partnership clients include Pizza Hut and Ameritech. It earned $692,000 on revenue of $12.3 million for the nine months ended Oct. 31.