GGT takes 8m Strongbow brief

GGT has wrested cidermaker HP Bulmer’s 8m Strongbow account away from incumbent J Walter Thompson. The brief is to attract more young men to cider.

The move ends a seven-year relationship between the cidermaker and the Berkeley Square agency.

GGT won in a straight pitch against JWT; HHCL & Partners was knocked out at an earlier stage.

Bulmer commercial director Tim Furse says the company is keen to increase sales of the brand among 18- to 24-year-old drinkers.

Strongbow is the biggest-selling cider in the country. Bulmer claims it accounts for roughly a quarter of the 115 million gallons of cider sold in the UK last year.

Furse says: “At this critical stage of the brand’s development it was important for us to get our communication right, and we believe the strategic thinking and creative solution presented by GGT offers the best way of achieving Strongbow’s ambition of breaking into the top ten long alcoholic drinks.”

GGT joint chairman Paul Bainsfair says: “We believe we can capture young males with work that combines humour and attitude.”

The campaign, which is expected to appear in the summer, will cover press, posters and TV.

The media buying stays with MindShare, the company formed from the merger of JWT Media and Ogilvy & Mather. Media strategy will be handled through independent media consultant Unity 3.

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