MANILA, PHILIPPINES — Longevity in advertising is rare. Relevance over time is even rarer. As TREYNA Group rolls out its latest rebrand, the story is less about a new name and more about how one of the Philippines’ original Mad Men-era agencies has managed to stay current in an industry that thrives on being fresh.
Founded in 1978, the agency has spent nearly five decades in a state of continuous reinvention. It has operated under multiple names — SSC&B Lintas, Lintas: Manila, Ammirati Puris Lintas, Lowe Lintas & Partners, Lowe Philippines, MullenLowe Philippines, MullenLowe TREYNA, and now TREYNA — the latest coming from the recent acquisition of IPG by Omnicom.
But executives say the more important constant has been its posture. “The constant through all our transformations has been a challenger mindset — the willingness to question, adapt and evolve as the industry and culture shift around us,” said Mike Trillana, president and CEO of TREYNA Group. “It’s what has allowed us to weather change over nearly five decades and continue finding new ways to stay relevant.”
That mindset traces back to 1980, when Francis B. Trillana Jr. left McCann Erickson Philippines to lead a then 12-person Lintas operation. By 1988, the agency had entered the country’s top 10, a position it has maintained since. Currently, TREYNA is on its second year as the number one Network Agency in the Philippines, according to Campaign Brief Asia agency rankings.
Rather than relying on legacy, TREYNA has consistently leaned into change — both in the work it produces and the capabilities it builds.
Its campaigns have long reflected an instinct for cultural resonance, from Selecta Cornetto’s “Hanggang saan aabot ang P20 mo?” to Fita’s “Sportscar, Yung Red!” and Purefoods’ “Goodbye, Carlo”. Its work has also embedded itself in everyday Filipino life, like when one walks into an SM Mall and hears “We’ve Got It All for You”.
More recently, that same approach has translated into globally recognized work, with “The Right to Care Card” in 2024 and “#StripesFitCheck” in 2025 winning more than 35 international awards combined.
At the same time, the agency has expanded beyond traditional advertising into public relations, brand activation, performance marketing, user experience and interface design, and content production, alongside three acquisitions in the past eight years.
As it approaches its 50th anniversary in 2028, TREYNA is positioning itself not as a legacy to preserve, but as a company still evolving — guided less by what it has been, and more by what it can still become.
