If Conrad Black turns to Wall Street to finance his shares buy-back, it’s not because the City of London no longer loves him, says George Pitcher

Marketing Week

Newspapers have been in the business of making the news this year. So it was little surprise last week that The Daily Telegraph overshadowed its financial results with news that proprietor Conrad Black intends to buy back the 42 per cent of the company that trades on the London stock market. Some old City bores […]

A defence of Consumers’ passions

Marketing Week

May I counter a number of unwarranted jibes in Tom O’Sullivan’s otherwise scrupulously fair portrait of the Consumers’ Association (“Shopper’s friend counters enemies”, MW February 10). John Murphy of Interbrand must choose a new set of adjectives if he is to criticise us more effectively. Self-appointed? The Consumers’ Association? We have more than 800,000 members. […]

Esprit to run underground sponsorship

Marketing Week

Esprit Sponsorship was this week appointed sponsorship agent for London Underground (LU). “We’re looking at anything from name association to full sponsorship of the entire LU system,” says Esprit account director Marcus Wight. However, care will need to be taken to avoid unnecessary duplication with the activities of LTA Advertising, which handles advertising sales for […]

Teenagers lose respect for the State

Marketing Week

The vast majority of teenagers are apathetic about the monarchy, religion and politics, according to new research from Carrick James. A survey of today’s teenage tastes shows the Royal family scoring a 92 per cent “not very/not at all interested”rating among 15 to19-year-olds. Politics did little better, registering 57 per cent on the “not-at-all interested” […]

No Title

Marketing Week

WCRS has lost two of its top creatives, copywriter Robin Weeks and art director Robin Smith, the duo that invented the Sega pirate TV campaign. Both resigned on Friday, and are understood to be joining Leo Burnett. Emirates, the Dubai airline, has shortlisted TBWA, Butterfield Day Devito Hockney, D’Arcy Masius Benton & Bowles, Leagas Delaney, […]

Colgate ad may face ASA action

Marketing Week

Colgate could face action from the Advertising Standards Authority for a knocking campaign against rival mouthwash product Listerine. Colgate’s new Plax mouthwash 96-sheet campaign, launched last Friday through Young & Rubicam, promotes its accreditation from the British Dental Association and ridicules Listerine’s TV ads. Listerine, it says, is recommended not by the BDA but “a […]

Virgin Cola withdrawn from news chain

Marketing Week

Virgin Cola has been withdrawn from Martin the Newsagent only two months after going on sale. Virgin officials confirmed this week it would no longer be supplying its own-brand cola to Martin’s 780 UK shops. According to Virgin it decided to withdraw the product after Martin demanded a listing fee for the product to be […]

Virgin gears up to enter PEPs arena

Marketing Week

Virgin’s joint financial venture with Norwich Union, Virgin Direct, opens this week with a £1m press campaign created by Rainey Kelly Campbell Roalfe. The full-colour ads publicise Virgin personal equity plans (PEPs). Later this year, Virgin plans to extend its product line to general insurance and pensions and back it with a TV push. Virgin […]

EMAP Radio establishes one-stop sponsors unit

Marketing Week

EMAP Radio has set up a London-based sponsorship and promotions team to deal with agencies and advertisers using any of its radio stations in the North-West, London, Leeds and Cardiff. Already, the unit has struck its first deal with Sky Television, which has booked a weekend promotion across six FM stations. The team, based at […]

Thos Cook’s Bennett to leave

Marketing Week

Tony Bennett, Thomas Cook strategic marketing & development director for Europe, is leaving the company after turning down a senior management role within the group’s worldwide travellers cheque business.

Jet first to offer cash vouchers

Marketing Week

Jet is following its rivals into the petrol loyalty market with the launch of its Collect for Cash scheme. But, unlike its competitors, Jet is offering cash vouchers to customers who use its forecourt shops. For every ú6 spent, customers will get a ú1 token – with a bonus ú1 when they have collected 48 […]

More O’Ferrall moves against Oscar II

Marketing Week

Poster specialist More O’Ferrall is gearing up for a fight with the Joint Industry Council on Poster Audience Research (JICPAR) over the introduction of Oscar II – the industry’s new research and planning system. MOF is understood to want the geodemographic part of the system scrapped because it does not believe that models of local […]

JOINT ACCOUNT

Marketing Week

It has 300 million users worldwide, it has been used for religious purposes since the eighth century BC, the Liberal Democrats are in favour of it and a third of all GCSE pupils have tried it. However, despite its popularity, this product is still illegal in the UK. Luckily for cannabis, the climate is changing, […]