Tribal DDB Opens Los Angeles Branch - Brief Article

Brandweek, March 12, 2001 by Janis Mara

Following major West Coast client wins and bucking the trend of interactive agency contraction, New Yorkbased Tribal DDB Worldwide has opened a Los Angeles office and hired Paran Johar as the outpost's general manager.

Johar, who previously ran Pleasanton, Calif.-based i-shop Groundswell's L.A. office, will oversee operations for the 10person shop and handle operations, strategy and client management.

Steven Marrs, Tribal's president and COO, would not say specifically which clients the agency has landed in L.A., but indicated that the clients are in "technology and automotive." Tribal will handle consulting, marketing and c-commerce, its longstanding specialties, for these clients.

Johar said, "One of the reasons I came to Tribal is our focus on managed growth. A lot of our competitors have gone through uncontrolled growth and had to scale back." Plus, he said, "It's great to be able to tell your friends, 'I'm with the agency that did the [Budweiser] Wassup! campaign.'"