METRO BY T-MOBILE SELECTS OKRP AS US CREATIVE AOR

Metro By T-Mobile spent $164 million on US measured media last year, according to Vivvix, including paid social data from Pathmatics

By Brian Bonilla

Metro by T-Mobile has named OKRP as its U.S. creative agency of record following a review conducted by ID Comms.

OKRP’s work will include campaigns focused on promoting new services, plans and offerings from the prepaid wireless brand. This will also include work created specifically for Hispanic and multiracial audiences.

Saatchi & Saatchi was the incumbent on the account and participated in the review, a spokeswoman for T-Mobile confirmed.

This is a significant win for OKRP, which made a splash last year by securing Burger King’s creative account and was named to Ad Age’s 2023 A-list.

“As the business grows, we’ve reviewed agency relationships to explore new ways to set our brand apart,” said Peter DeLuca, chief creative officer and senior VP at T-Mobile. “We’ve heard from some exceptional teams throughout this process and are grateful to all who participated.”

Putney, the Black-owned production and content studio that OKRP helped launch last year, will also be involved in the account.

In 2022, Metro By T-Mobile spent $164 million on U.S. measured media according to Vivvix, including paid social data from Pathmatics. It spent $219 million in 2021.

In addition to conducting ethnographic research on Metro’s customer base for the review, OKRP visited multiple Metro retail outlets across four states to better understand the brand. OKRP and Metro are currently developing work based on an idea presented during the pitch process. That work is expected to be rolled out in the next few months.

“We knew we had to do our homework to really understand Metro and its customer—and owe a lot to the team at Metro for being partners before they were clients,” Nick Paul, president of OKRP, said in a statement.

The appointment comes three months after Jon Freier, president of T-Mobile’s consumer group, released a statement detailing plans to reimagine T-Mobile’s brick and motor stores which include launching “Express stores.”

“Our new Express format—branded as Metro by T-Mobile and operated by Authorized Retailers—will offer fast ways to purchase prepaid and select postpaid products. Express will also create new jobs for the entrepreneurs (who often live in the communities) operating them,” Freier wrote.

Other changes include more investments in mobile trucks, in-store digital experiences and kiosks within big-box retailers such as Costco, Walmart and Best Buy.

Last month, T-Mobile also announced that it would be acquiring Ka’ena Corporation and its subsidiaries and brands including Mint Mobile and Ultra Mobile.