Month: March 1996

The BP-Mobil merger signals the first round of the oil giants’ fight to regain control of their retail market. By pushing out independents, the majors

Radio accountability must be improved and the need is all the more pressing in the light of the growing dominance of Capital Radio’s Media Sales & Marketing, according to CIA Medianetwork. In a presentation to the IBC conference this week, director David Fletcher urges stations and sales houses to justify cost increases. Further proof of […]

Food and drinks giant Nestlé UK is turning to “own-label” retailing by striking exclusive supply deals through partnerships with major transport operators.

I would like to respond to the article “Track to the future” (MW February 9). The article referred to Visa USA as one of the worldwide sponsors of the Olympic Games.

Consumers will soon be able to cook ready-prepared meals without removing the packaging when a new range of edible film is launched which dissolves when cooked. The film is supplied by Cambridge Consultants and film supplier Enak. The joint venture is developing the first applications for a range of the new films, which are soluble […]

Europe’s biggest own-label supplier, McBride, is believed to be in negotiations to buy a competitor in response to growing pressure from supermarket giants Tesco, Sainsbury’s and Safeway, which it supplies. It is understood that McBride is negotiating with Toronto-based household goods supplier, CCL Industries, to buy part of its European operation. In the UK, CCL […]

With traffic density low, retailers are looking for new ways to divert consumers in their direction, says a new report. Jef Harris is managing director of Harris International Marketing

The huge investment required to launch new products has triggered a rise in extending existing brands. Some believe this signals the death of innovation but, as Martin Croft reports, by building the range companies can create the complete bran

Is the Independent Television Commission fit to rule? It’s not dynamic, it’s not staffed by the right people and it doesn’t understand the changing media market, its critics claim. Oh, and who is Peter Rogers, anyway?

Perhaps the most obvious step the direct marketing industry has taken to reassure the public is the creation of the Mailing Preference Service. Set up in 1983, the MPS offers consumers who object to direct mail the opportunity to have that objection noted and, hopefully, to have the mailings stopped. The MPS maintains a register […]

Sara Lee is reviewing the 7m pan-European advertising for its American clothing brand Hanes. The clothing label was put in the hands of TBWA for a pan-European launch last year (MW March 31 1995) with a brief to do for Hanes what it had done with another Sara Lee subsidiary, Playtex Wonderbra. Hanes began an […]

Sounds like it’s all backfired on those cads at Leagas Shafron Davis who sent out the spoof Valentine cards (MW February 23). The Diary understands the agency has been bombarded with faxes and calls from furious marketing directors with no sexual magnetism and no sense of humour. “A monumental waste of en-vironmental and human resources,” […]

The CIA Group has won Shell’s centralised 35m pan-European media buying and planning account. CIA International, pitching with the UK agency, won the business against the two incumbents – The Network and Optimedia – as well as Leo Burnett. The Shell pitches were conducted in the UK by Media Audits two weeks ago and CIA […]

Integrating above and below the line is not just a case of folding up the image ads into an envelope and sending them off to a list of propects. As David Reed reports, agencies must look to data analysis techniques and ensure both disciplines

Gaio yogurt, a Danish product launched last summer which claims to lower consumer cholesterol levels (MW June 23 1995), has been condemned by the Advertising Standards Authority for making “exaggerated” and “unsupported” claims. Gaio, made by MD Foods which also makes Lurpak, is one of the first in a wave of so-called “functional foods” marketed […]