DHL poised to review 25m pan-European ad account
DHL, the global delivery service owned by Deutsche Post, is understood to be reviewing its pan-European advertising account. It is understood that the pitch, which is being run out of Germany, is still in early stages.
Ogilvy Stockholm is the lead agency on the account although Ogilvy Primary Contact, Ogilvy’s business-to-business division in the UK, handles some work. It is thought that the review is being handled by AAR Gmbh in Germany.
Lisa Morgan, director for marketing communications at DHL Express Europe, denies there is any review. She adds: “I do work with Ogilvy Sweden for pan-European campaigns and am not reviewing our account. Our corporate branding and advertising department is based in Bonn. They are responsible for all global brand communications for DHL and are in touch with many agencies/companies in this respect.”
An Ogilvy spokesman says the agency is unaware of any account review.
Last year, DHL appointed Harrison Troughton Wunderman (HTW) to handle direct marketing in the UK without a pitch, while Vizeum handles media. It is not thought that they will be affected by the review.
DHL is not known for high-profile advertising campaigns, but last year it ran a global branding campaign around Hollywood film Mission: Impossible III, with ads showing DHL staff carrying out “impossible missions”.
The company was founded in the US in 1969, but Deutsche Post took a major stake in the company in 1998, completing a full acquisition by 2002. DHL is the world’s largest international air express network, delivering to 120,000 destinations in more than 220 countries and territories.
