Naked/Starcom bag £60m Honda

Honda has moved its entire £60m media planning and buying business into Naked and Starcom Motive.

Honda has moved its entire &£60m media planning and buying business into Naked and Starcom Motive.

The move centralises all the planning and buying business for Honda’s cars, retail, motorcycles, power equipment and marine motors into the two agencies.

The bulk of the business moves from Mediahead, formerly known as CDP Media. Naked and Starcom pitched against Mediahead and Mediaedge:CIA – which pitched together – and Walker Media.

The media review was overseen by Honda project leader Chris Brown, who is now understood to be taking a sabbatical from the company for personal reasons. In the meantime, he will work for Honda as a consultant.

The review follows Honda’s appointment of Wieden & Kennedy as its creative agency last year. It previously used the Leith Agency and CDP.

Wieden & Kennedy has since created a central branding ad for Honda, called Factory.

Commenting on the review, Brown says: “Wieden & Kennedy has delivered, achieving the same brand awareness as many larger competitors, but we need more. We need to be more creative with our media and we need greater financial effectiveness. There is no surprise about our new media line-up.”

The new agency hirings follow last year’s 16 per cent dip in Honda’s European sales. Honda’s new UK car sales were down seven per cent, to 63,459, in 2001, according to the Society of Motor Manufactures and Traders.