Hasbro hands Griffin Bacal £4m bonus
Hasbro is believed to have parted company with TBWA GGT Simons Palmer and J Walter Thompson, and handed its pre-school account, estimated at &£4m, to Griffin Bacal.
The moves, which involve classic brands such as Play-Doh, Spirograph and Play Skool, will leave Griffin Bacal with a virtual monopoly of Hasbro’s business in the UK.
It will hand the agency control of this year’s pre-school toy success story Tweenies, which was handled by TBWA, and K’Nex, handled by J Walter Thompson.
A source close to the company says: “Hasbro has carried out a thorough review of its advertising, and it has decided to consolidate its business into one agency. That is where the expertise and the experience is.
Tweenies, which is owned by the BBC but licensed to Hasbro, expects to generate worldwide sales of &£25m in the next year, with spin-off merchandise and toys.
Griffin Bacal handles an estimated 80 per cent of Hasbro’s business worldwide. It is currently working on new UK TV ads for a board game, Operation, which is believed to involve a spoof of hit TV show ER.
Media planning and buying will continue to be handled by BMP OMD.
