A press release trumpeting the relaunch of Andrex with Aloe Vera (as Andrex enriched with Aloe Vera, which has a much nicer ring, don’t you think?) inadvertently reveals to the Diary what a bunch of misery guts the British really are. After ploughing through a load of crap along the lines of “Consumers are looking […]
Although revenue has been growing, there has been little good news from Havas of late. Widely perceived to be struggling, its independence looks increasingly precarious.
Computer games publisher Atari UK has appointed former HMV head of marketing Richard Orr as marketing director. Orr replaces Amanda Farr, who has been on maternity leave since October and plans to return as a part-time consultant. Prior to joining Atari, Orr spent a year at BMG Records as head of catalogue. Before that he […]
TNT Mail, one of the main challengers to Royal Mail in the deregulated postal market, has secured 25 new customers, including Sky and Caudwell Communications, since its launch in August.
We read with great amusement Iain Murray’s article on Freemasonry (MW January 6). As first-class graduates of Oxford and Newcastle University respectively, we have chosen to join “the outré and even slightly sinister ranks of the PR industry” and are currently account managers at Z’est PR. “Not reactive, but proactive” may well be our mantra […]
Boy Meets Girl has retained petrol forecourt retailer Total’s estimated £1m below-the-line account in the UK following a statutory review. It pitched against four unnamed agencies. The agency has been appointed to a three-year contract covering all areas of Total’s business, including its 900-strong service station network. The agency will be responsible for all point-of-purchase, […]
Coca-Cola Great Britain has axed its drink for toddlers, Winnie The Pooh Roo Juice, putting its partnership with Walt Disney in the UK in jeopardy. Coca-Cola signed a global deal with Walt Disney in 2001 to develop drinks that tie up with Disney characters. Brands still exist in other territories, but a spokeswoman says there […]
Samsung Mobile is seeking an agency to handle its £6m advertising account in the UK, just two months after the Korean electronics giant awarded its $770m (£412m) global advertising business to WPP Group. The decision to hire an agency for the UK business follows the appointment of former Phones4U director of marketing Julian Neal as […]
Oriental food manufacturer Blue Dragon is launching an advertising campaign to raise brand awareness in an attempt to challenge Sharwood’s dominance of the market. The £4m television campaign will kick into action for the peak trading time of the Chinese New Year and will be aired nationally from January 21. The animated campaign will reflect […]
Stella Artois manufacturer Inbev has handed the estimated $40m (£22m) task of turning its Latin American beer Brahma into a global brand to US advertising agency McGarry Bowen.The independent New York-based agency is expected to handle the imminent launch of the brand in the UK as there are no plans to make a local agency […]
Heresy has won the pitch to create a £3m branding campaign for Whitbread-owned low-cost hotel chain Premier Travel Inn, formerly called Travel Inn.
Bacardi-Martini’s Latin Quarter cinema ad has been censured by the advertising watchdog for being “socially irresponsible” because it features the rum being poured flamboyantly. The ad shows Italian actor Raoul Bova throwing a party on a railway platform after missing the last train, and then tossing a bottle of Bacardi in the air to the […]
Halifax Bank of Scotland has appointed OgilvyOne as lead agency for its £10m direct marketing account. JDA and Navigator remain on the roster.
Staples is understood to have appointed Clark McKay & Walpole to its £3m advertising account after the agency pitched against Joshua, Maher Bird Associates and RPM for the business.
HMV has reported good Christmas trading results with 4.3 per cent like-for-like sales growth at HMV and seven per cent like-for-like growth at Waterstone’s.