EXCLUSIVE: As Disneyland heads into its 70th anniversary and Walt Disney Studios readies for the summer box office season with Thunderbolts* opening on Friday, Disney Experiences Chairman Josh D’Amaro and Disney’s Chief Brand Officer Asad Ayaz have informed staffers that two of the entertainment conglom’s in-house creative agencies – Yellow Shoes and The Hive – will come together under Ayaz to dovetail brand and experiences campaigns across Disney’s various consumer touchpoints.
Yellow Shoes, the in-house creative agency for Disney’s parks, resorts, cruise ships and other experiences, will continue to be led by Helen Pak, SVP Creative – Marketing/Design/Content. She will now report to both Ayaz and Frank Chiocchi, EVP of Creative Marketing, who oversees The Hive, an internal creative agency for The Walt Disney Company responsible for concepting, producing, and developing creative marketing across company brands, Walt Disney Studio banners, and Disney+.
The m.o. to bring both creative teams under Chief Brand Officer Ayaz stems from unifying and strengthening Disney’s storytelling across their many fan and consumer-facing platforms.
Below is D’Amaro and Ayaz’s email to Disney employees:
Organizational Announcement: Yellow Shoes and The Hive
One of the unique things about Disney is the connection people have with our brand – the stories we tell and the ways we bring them to life for fans and audiences around the world. The relationship with our consumers is essential to everything we do, and we see an incredible opportunity to tell a more compelling and unified story.
To that end, we are pleased to announce that we’re bringing together our two in-house agencies with brilliant creative talent – Yellow Shoes and The Hive – under Asad in his purview as Chief Brand Officer for The Walt Disney Company. This will help drive alignment, creativity, and greater synergy, enhancing the collaboration between these two creative marketing ecosystems, benefiting our branded entertainment and experiences and the company at large. Helen Pak, SVP Creative-Marketing/Design/Content and leader of Yellow Shoes, will now report to both Asad and Frank Chiocchi, EVP of Marketing, effective immediately. Lisa Becket, EVP Global Marketing for Disney Experiences, will continue to lead the Marketing Center of Excellence, including Consumer Franchise Strategy, Customer Engagement, and Consumer Insight, Measurement & Analytics (CIMA), reporting to Josh.
We are partnering closely to ensure a smooth and thoughtful transition, and each team will continue to be focused on their respective work as we explore opportunities for even greater exposure and collaboration. Leaders will share more details in the coming weeks.
As this transition takes shape, we look forward to seeing our incredibly talented teams come together as a one-of-a-kind, world-class organization that is uniquely Disney – delivering the most creative, powerful and innovative campaigns in the entertainment industry…and beyond.
Josh and Asad
