SAB hunts agency to take Urquell global
South African Breweries (SAB) is looking to appoint an advertising agency for the global relaunch of its Czech Republic-brewed brand Pilsner Urquell.
The lager is stocked in a limited number of UK outlets, but SAB plans to make it more widely available. Distribution in this country is through Ubevco.
Urquell is also available in the US and certain European markets, including Spain, where it is sold in bottles and cans. But it will be rolled out globally, backed with a multi-million pound marketing spend.
An SAB spokesman says: “The brand is already widely available in Poland and Eastern Europe. We want to give it a big push in the UK, the US and Germany.”
SAB is looking for a creative agency through the AAR. It is not clear how much the account is worth, although it could involve TV ads.
The pitch will be overseen by Urquell global marketing director Phil Plowman. He joined SAB after spending six years at Holsten, where he was latterly marketing director for Holsten Pils.
SAB bought Urquell from Japanese bank Nomura last year as a rival to Budweiser and Heineken and owns a 75.5 per cent stake in the brewer of the same name.
