Fitch, AAD Make it Official

The three-month phasing in of AAD, the Scottsdale, Ariz., architecture and design firm, into Fitch Worldwide has officially begun. According to plans laid by parent company Cordiant Communications Group, Fitch Worldwide will be the flagship brand for CCG's Design & Branding division, constituting Cordiant's move into integrated marketing services. The company also said other design and branding firms will be folded into the Fitch platform over the next year.

AAD, which has been calling itself Fitch/AAD during the transition, and Fitch Worldwide (Worthington, Ohio) have been cross-selling to such clients as Universal Studios (Island of Adventure), Burger King and Maytag Appliances (reimaging campaigns), Warner Bros. (Studio 16 restaurant in Las Vegas) and most recently a Harley Davidson retail project in Orlando. Several more projects, including rollout work for The Limited, are in the works.

According to Carl Schaffer, principal of the 25-year-old Arizona firm, the AAD-Fitch synergy offers research, strategy and trend forecasting; retail, graphic, identity and interactive design; space planning, wayfinding, masterplanning and architecture; merchandising; and large-scale rollout.

Cordiant Communications Group in the 10th largest global marketing communications group in the world, with 216 offices and more than 10,500 employees in 80 countries.