10m NZ tourist brief for Saatchi

The New Zealand Tourist Board has appointed Saatchi & Saatchi to develop a 10m global marketing strategy, bringing to an end Mustoe Merriman Herring Levy’s hold on the UK account.

Saatchi won the centralised account in a pitch against M&C Saatchi, Abbott Mead Vickers. BBDO and DDB Needham.

The campaign, which will be spread over two years, heralds a new direction for NZTB. A global image theme supersedes the previous regional marketing to Europe, the US, Canada and South America, Australia and Asia.

Kevin Roberts, Saatchi & Saatchi International worldwide chief executive, who moved to New Zealand nine years ago and now divides his time between Auckland, New York and London, is known to be enthusiastic about the project, “Discover New Zealand”. He says: “We’ve chosen to make our home here. I want to share that with everyone.”

UK and Scandinavia marketing manager Siobhan Galvin says NZTB decided to devise a global strategy ly to exploit events with worldwide appeal. These include next year’s APEC conference, the World Cup Golf tournament, the Americas Cup, and the Sydney Olympics in 2000.

Saatchi handled the 800,000 UK business until January 1996, when country manager Linda Fleet took over and appointed Mustoe Merriman without a pitch.

But Fleet leaves NZTB this Friday to move to Australia and Mustoe Merriman, along with the agencies which handle NZTB in each market worldwide, will be phased out by the end of the year.

Mustoe Merriman business development director Damian Horner says: “It’s a shame to see it go.”