TBWA faces review of 2.5m Fuji account…

Fuji, the photographic film and camera manufacturer, is talking to agencies about its 2.5m account held by TBWA GGT Simons Palmer.

It is understood that a number of agencies have been briefed about the business through consultant Andrew Melsom at Agency Insight.

The briefing is likely to lead to a full pitch for the account in the new year. The brief covers both film and cameras. The company is determined to increase its share of the film market, which is dominated by Kodak, and to expand the Fuji brand into a broader group of consumers.

Steve Waldron, Fuji’s product manager for consumer imaging, says: “We may well be talking to agencies, but we have not asked them to pitch. Simons Palmer is still our above-the-line agency.”

The account was originally won by Simons Palmer Clemmow Johnson in September 1996.

Since then, Simons Palmer has merged with TBWA and later with the BDDP group.

The agency has created campaigns for QuickSnap, Fuji’s disposable camera, the Fuji Fotonex camera and Nexia Film.

Fuji’s UK marketing chief Roger Moore was in Tokyo and unavailable for comment.

He took over last December from Christopher Hobbs, who left after 15 months with the company (MW December 18 1997).