Guinness UDV reviews £10m DM businesses

Guinness UDV Great Britain is reviewing its &£10m direct marketing agency roster, with a view to consolidating the business into one agency.

The review, which will be overseen by marketing development manager Hayley Davis, will involve outside as well as existing roster agencies. Pitches will be completed by March 2002.

The Diageo-owned company claims that direct marketing is an increasingly important part of its marketing strategy, and investment in the area is growing. However, the amounts earmarked for DM is dwarfed by the &£50m the company spends on TV advertising.

Davis hopes to have a new agency in place for all existing DM accounts on the Guinness UDV brands by July 2002.

She says: “This is the first time Guinness UDV Great Britain has conducted a review of the [direct marketing] market, and with new opportunities constantly arising in the field, it is an ideal time to evaluate how we work in this area.”

The incumbent agencies are WWAV Rapp Collins Scotland, which handles Drambuie and Smirnoff; EHS Brann, which handles Guinness Draught and Guinness Extra Cold; and Craik Jones Watson Mitchell Voelkel, which handles Baileys, Bells and Gordon’s.

Guinness UDV was formed in 2000 when Diageo combined Guinness and United Distillers. Other brands owned by the company include Harp, Red Stripe, Archers, Malibu, Jack Daniels, and Southern Comfort.