Guinness Ireland appoints HHCL to Kilkenny cream ale

Guinness Ireland has appointed HHCL & Partners to handle its Kilkenny cream ale without a pitch.

Kilkenny – which was launched in Ireland in 1995 – was previously handled by Irish International Advertising & Marketing, which is also responsible for Guinness Ireland’s Budweiser and Harp accounts.

HHCL referred all comments to a Guinness Ireland spokeswoman, who says: “HHCL’s appointment to Kilkenny has just taken effect, and we expect new work in the next four to six weeks.”

She refuses to comment on the billings of the advertising work, but it will be a fraction of the 5m Guinness GB spends on the Kilkenny brand in the UK, through its agency Publicis.

HHCL will handle creative work and it is also possible that some of its ideas could be used in promotional and below-the-line activities.

The agency was first appointed to the Guinness Ireland roster in August 1996 to handle the Guinness stout brand. Since then, it has tried to capitalise on this success in the UK, and managed to gain a place on the pitch list for the Guinness brand. It failed to win the account, which moved out of Ogilvy & Mather to Abbott Mead Vickers. BBDO earlier this month.