OMD, the media buying arm of DDB Worldwide, has consolidated its hold on cosmetics and fragrances giant Coty’s media buying and planning after gaining the US, German and French business. The US business is worth $40m (£25m). Media centralisation into the OMD network is part of a strategy by Johannes A Benckiser, now owned by […]
Scottish Courage is understood to be preparing to launch a premium McEwan’s beer in Scotland to target younger drinkers. The brewing giant is believed to have earmarked £2m for the launch, likely to include a TV campaign. It is thought the company is keen to revitalise the brand, which has suffered declining sales and an […]
Freestone’s lawyers claim Yellow Pages has copied its design and wants compensation so it can rebrand. If they are successful, it will break the chain of small firms losing their corporate identities to the big guns.
Loyalty programmes began in earnest in the UK with the launch of the Tesco Clubcard scheme in 1995. But do these programmes really give value to retailers, or are they just an expensive fad? Robert East and Dr Wendy Lomax, of Kingston Business School, investigate the real value of loyalty schemes. According to Reichheld1,who explored […]
Malcolm Parkinson has been appointed sales and marketing director of packaged meat producer Tulip International UK – owner of brands such as Danepak bacon. Parkinson joins the UK arm of European pig-meat producer Danish Crown from Whitworths, where he was commercial director. He has held senior sales and commercial positions at Dairy Crest and Mars. […]
Thomson Holidays, the UK’s largest tour operator, is setting up an Internet supermarket to sell both its own and competitors’ holidays direct. Industry observers expect the venture to operate as a separate brand, although the Thomson name is likely to figure in some capacity. The tour operator is seeking a marketing director and managing director […]
The Seattle protestors weren’t fighting against capitalism, but pushing for regulated global trade to prevent major social upheaval, says George Pitcher
ITV is revamping its online strategy to compete with the BBC. But can it subsume its disparate brands under a coherent Website?
BT is to offer US-style unmetred Internet access for the first time with the launch of “BT surftime” in the spring. UK Net enthusiasts have long been pressing for unmetred access instead of having to pay per minute charges to surf the Web. “BT surftime” – to be backed by an ad campaign – will […]
Kellogg is to add extra calcium to its leading UK breakfast brands in an attempt to increase its share of the children’s cereal market. The revised recipes for children’s favourites such as Frosties, Coco Pops and Rice Krispies will be implemented in February, accompanied by new on-pack designs and point-of-sale support. The move follows the […]
Dennis Publishing is holding a full-service pitch for the launch of its first glossy women’s title in February. Codenamed “Project Denise”, the 290-page perfect-bound title will focus on fashion, beauty, home furnishings and accessories which can be ordered direct by phone, off-the-page or online. Aimed at 25- to 44-year-old ABC1 women, the magazine’s launch will […]
The Institute of Practitioners in Advertising (IPA) has rejected a move by Trinity Mirror-owned Birmingham Post & Mail (BP&M) to set up an independent arbitration panel to handle compensation claims arising from the overstatement of circulation figures for three of its newspapers. BP&M plans to establish a three-person panel, chaired by a top barrister, to […]
Richard Branson has poached British Gas Trading marketing boss and former National Lottery marketing director Jon Kinsey to spearhead the Virgin Group’s anticipated assault on utilities and telecoms. Kinsey becomes managing director of Virgin Home Services, a division of the group tipped to offer a package of phone and possibly electricity, water and gas services. […]
Consumer response rates; Business-to-business response rates; Average response rates by data source; Average response rate by response channel
Kingfisher Group-owned chain Superdrug has appointed former marketing controller Neil Jarvis as head of marketing with responsibility for its £10m total advertising budget. Jarvis, who replaces Paul Geddes following his appointment as Comet marketing director in August, will oversee the day-to-day ad and promotions budget, reporting directly to marketing director Steven Round. He will also […]