#FreeDroga movement picks up steam at Cannes

The fine people over at Accenture Interactive are going to need some aftersun to recover from this serious burn.

Terri & Sandy, a New York-based independent, drove a knife into the consultancy firm with a series of cheeky stunts in Cannes, including flying a plane over the beach with a banner that read "FREE DROGA."

The owners -- slightly bitter about losing the 2019 Effie Awards number one Most Effective Independent Agency in North America to Droga5 -- have launched a GoFundMe page to help the renowned creative shop buy itself back.

Part of it reads: "To finish second out of thousands of deserving independent ad agencies was an extraordinary accomplishment. We were doubly honored when we saw who bested us: Droga5. Droga5’s reputation is legendary; its creative work unparalleled. And we were thrilled for them, until we realized something tragic: Droga5 was recently acquired by Accenture. So it is no longer independent.

"‘How,’ we asked ourselves, ‘could the brilliant people at Droga5 possibly celebrate their status as the best independent agency in North America without independence?’ This injustice could not stand. We concluded that only by freeing itself from its new corporate overlords could Droga5 rightfully wear the crown it had so justly earned. All Droga5 would need is a measly $475M to buy itself back.

"Guessing that Droga5 had already burned through most of that Accenture money with sound investments in VR goggles, ping pong tables, Blue Bottle coffee, and Vegemite, we graciously took it upon ourselves to raise the funds necessary to enable Droga5 to buy back their esteemed agency. After passing a hat around Terri & Sandy, we collected $43 in cash and loose change, a Lenwich coupon, two Tic Tacs, and a button."