Blue Chip Names John Maxham Chief Creative Officer

Above: Blue Chip's John Maxham (left) and Stanton Kawer (right)

​Blue Chip has named John Maxham its first chief creative officer. The former CCO of DDB and Laughlin Constable and leader of campaigns for brands such as Skittles, Jeep, State Farm and Capital One brings a big idea orientation to the middle market-focused agency. Most recently, John had been consulting for the likes of Abbott, Kohler and agencies on both coasts along with Blue Chip, where he authored a shift in the agency’s focus over the past 18 months.

“I’ve consulted for a lot of agencies that say they want to attract clients with bigger ideas and brand thinking, but Blue Chip was serious about overhauling the creative culture,” said John. “Leadership didn’t ask me to head a creative department; they asked me to help build a new kind of agency. We’ve reconfigured the team and introduced a new process for generating ideas. Now we’re truly changing the face of the business.”

In the past year, Blue Chip has won creative agency of record assignments from Lamb Weston, Emerald Nuts, Frogtape, La Brea Bakery and Panera at Home.

That’s a long way from the agency’s retail roots – it was founded as a shopper marketing agency 43 years ago and has long delivered marketplace success for such clients as Procter & Gamble, Bausch & Lomb and Gallo Winery. Yet the transition fits a broader narrative and purpose. Blue Chip is about business impact, now billed as Brand CommerceTM. As it deepens consumer insights, retailer intelligence and advanced analytics, the agency sees opportunity for more holistic client relationships where its teams can build brands over time and drive sales overnight.

“We’re fusing brand and commerce thinking,” said Stanton Kawer, CEO at Blue Chip. “So, we can prevent clients from having to work with a bunch of disconnected agencies because we can put it all together. With John at the helm we can lead a business through the entire journey to measurable growth, from creative that knocks you off your chair to retail activations that inspire you to reach for the brand.”

“There’s something genuinely different about the model we’re building here,” said John. “That’s rare.”