- Staff Report, Adweek

Annie's Homegrown, a Napa, Calif.-based maker of organic and natural pasta meals, snacks and cereal, has chosen TDA Advertising & Design of Boulder, Colo., for ad chores following a review.

The independent shop becomes the first lead agency for Annie's. Initial work will break in the fall.

"As Annie's continues to grow, we knew it was time to expand our conversation with our consumers," says Sarah Bird, client vp-marketing. "We were impressed not only with TDA's creativity, but with their expertise in the natural market. We've found a marketing partner who shares our appreciation of the qualities that make our brand so special."

TDA creative director Jonathan Schoenberg said: "We love selling stuff we were using before we got the phone call. Annie's has been on Thomas Dooley's and my family's kitchen shelves since our kids began eating solid foods."

The budget was not disclosed but would likely be in the $500,000-$1 million range. Review competitors could not immediately be determined. (The company has advertised only sporadically in the past and made no significant media expenditures in the past two years, per Nielsen Monitor-Plus.)

TDA handles a mix of consumer and business clients including FirstBank, Pizza Inn, Titus Bicycles and Cloudveil, among others. The shop claims overall billings in the $25 million range.

Of late, the agency's best-known work is probably its offbeat and colorful spots for Bot beverages, which show bad things happening to three animated characters who look like delinquent cousins of the Teletubbies.