HMV hands back £14m brief to Bds Beechwood

Bds Beechwood has retained HMV’s &£14m advertising account after a final shoot-out with one other undisclosed agency.

HMV Europe marketing director John Taylor led the review for the specialist music, DVD and games retailer, inviting five agencies plus Bds to pitch for the business (MW February 5). Bds has held the above-the-line account for the retailer for more than seven years.

Taylor says: “Reviews give you an opportunity for a close look at who else is out there, and also allow you to evaluate whether your objectives are being met and to reassess your creative requirements.

“I am pleased that Bds has shown that they continue to be the right agency for HMV, and we look forward to working with them again.”

Media, which is handled by OMD UK, was not part of the review. Neither was Waterstone’s, which is part of the HMV Group and is also handled by Bds.

HMV head of marketing Laurie Webster quit during the review. Webster joined HMV seven months ago from wine chain Oddbins.

The retailer has adjusted its offering to fend off the threat from consumers downloading music from the internet and supermarkets. It is concentrating on larger stores that can take a large back-catalogue and on mature customers with a broader taste in music than just the charts.