“I’m a proud Latina millennial, and my wonderful queer partners, we are loud and proud of it. And in every way that we have chosen to express ourselves is a departure from how the industry is presenting itself,” Volpe told ADWEEK.
Vacation has been operating in stealth mode for a few months with clients from previous agencies. They include HP, where they are working with a female-led team across a series of verticals; Ries, a Black, female-owned premium travel brand; and Animal, a new queer bar in Brooklyn that’s launching the forthcoming cultural publication Animal Print.
The agency fully embraces the project-based nature of today’s landscape. The shop has bundled its services into “Vacation Packages,” from strategic workshops to design overhauls to proper campaigns. For its signature “Vacation Package,” the company goes to work while its client is on holiday. For its “Group Outing,” the team hitches up with other shops, production companies or in-house agencies that need a new perspective or extra creative muscle to win business or produce work.
Making a stand for Pride
Mellen said that leading with their identities is a real choice because it’s going to determine who they attract and don’t attract.
“It’s a little scary what’s happening in America right now, this extreme polarization, the walking back of progress that we’ve made over 50 years,” said Mellen, even calling out what is happening in the ad industry right now, with businesses downplaying Pride.
Mellen finds it “disheartening, if not despicable, that brands are leading with fear and letting active homophobes dictate the degree to which they recognize our community,” like massive donation cuts to LGBTQ+ organizations. Vacation decided to come out during Pride because there’s a threat to how their communities thrive.
Vacation is deliberate about who it works with, both on the client and partner side because the team can’t necessarily determine the politics and policies of a brand based on an RFP.