Maher Bird scores twice with BT and Mercedes accounts

Maher Bird Associates has won its first BT business – the global relaunch of its satellite communications arm BT Inmarsat.

The work, won without a pitch, involves relaunching the business under the new brand BT Global Mobile Communications and is likely to appear in colour press titles in the new year. It follows a 14m investment by BT in a land base station in New Zealand, aimed at giving the telecoms company full global coverage.

The win comes as Maher Bird picks up a further account from Mercedes, worth up to 1m, to handle its used car business. This was held by Leo Burnett, which resigned the whole 7m (Register-MEAL) UK account because of potential international conflicts with Fiat.

Maher Bird won Mercedes’ corporate fleet account in March. Its latest win is unconnected to the pitch for an agency to replace Leo Burnett. Butterfield Day Devito Hockney, Barker & Ralston, Simons Palmer Clemmow Johnson, BST-BDDP and Mercedes’ existing roster agency Buckfield Lord & Co are shortlisted.