Interpublic Group of Cos. spun off Chicago agencies Premium Surge and Group III Promotions as the troubled holding company refocuses on its core disciplines.
 

Kevin Berg

IPG sold majority stake in each agency to event-marketing veteran Kevin Berg, who sold his event-marketing shop, KBA Marketing, to IPG in 1998. The deal, completed in December and announced this week, separates Premium Surge from Draft. New York-based IPG keeps an undisclosed minority interest in Premium Surge and Group III.

Vince Parrinello

Event-marketing shop Group III has been re-named Legacy Marketing Partners, with Berg as CEO and former Draft exec VP Vince Parrinello as president. (Parrinello had been president of Group III before IPG bought the shop in 2000, merged it with KBA Marketing and folded it under Draft.) Legacy claims net revenues of about $7.5 million and 45 staffers; clients include Coca-Cola, Florida Dept. of Citrus, L'Oréal Paris and Pernod Ricard USA.

Separately, Premium Surge continues to work primarily on Burger King, with some project work for other, undisclosed clients. Draft formed the premiums division in November 2001 to handled Burger King work, hiring 14 executives from Simon Marketing shortly after McDonald's Corp. fired Simon, blaming the shop for its game piece embezzlement scandal. Those former execs remain at Premium Surge, with Abdiel Estrella as president. Berg serves as CEO of Premium Surge, which reports $7.5 million in net revenues.

Interpublic Group of Cos. spun off Chicago agencies Premium Surge and Group III Promotions as the troubled holding company refocuses on its core disciplines.
 

Kevin Berg

IPG sold majority stake in each agency to event-marketing veteran Kevin Berg, who sold his event-marketing shop, KBA Marketing, to IPG in 1998. The deal, completed in December and announced this week, separates Premium Surge from Draft. New York-based IPG keeps an undisclosed minority interest in Premium Surge and Group III.

Vince Parrinello

Event-marketing shop Group III has been re-named Legacy Marketing Partners, with Berg as CEO and former Draft exec VP Vince Parrinello as president. (Parrinello had been president of Group III before IPG bought the shop in 2000, merged it with KBA Marketing and folded it under Draft.) Legacy claims net revenues of about $7.5 million and 45 staffers; clients include Coca-Cola, Florida Dept. of Citrus, L'Oréal Paris and Pernod Ricard USA.

Separately, Premium Surge continues to work primarily on Burger King, with some project work for other, undisclosed clients. Draft formed the premiums division in November 2001 to handled Burger King work, hiring 14 executives from Simon Marketing shortly after McDonald's Corp. fired Simon, blaming the shop for its game piece embezzlement scandal. Those former execs remain at Premium Surge, with Abdiel Estrella as president. Berg serves as CEO of Premium Surge, which reports $7.5 million in net revenues.