Some VW managers are seriously concerned. Their dynamic and controversial group chief executive Ferdinand Piech has decreed that the marque should head upmarket. Why should that be a cause for anxiety? Any responsible steward seeks to enhance his brand’s prestige. And a more expensive car is a better car: better by far on margin. That’s […]
Over the last week, distress has been caused by comments attributed to Nationwide marketing director Mike Lazenby, the new sponsors of the England national football team, concerning the relative value of sponsorship over spot advertising. What Mr Lazenby told our reporter was: “All I am saying is that you and I were born with a […]
Catalogue shopping chain Argos is talking to advertising agencies about a secret project. The retailer was bought recently by Great Universal Stores after a fraught 1.9bn takeover. It owns 400 stores in the UK. The company refuses to discuss details of the project, but confirms it is talking to a number of agencies. Argos’ mainstream […]
Argos, the retailer still embroiled in a dispute with its new owner GUS, is to lose one of its longest-serving executives. Former marketing director John Mayhead, who has been at the company since 1985, will leave next March in the latest of a series of executive moves since GUS’ hostile 1.9bn takeover in April. In […]
Carat’s grip on Volkswagen’s European media buying – one of its biggest accounts – has been weakened with the 170m German business moving to Grey Advertising’s MediaCom. The move – a significant blow for Carat – leaves a question mark over other key VW markets where the network handles media buying, particularly the UK, Spain, […]
Lads magazine Front has been shunned by a financial services advertiser because its contents are too sexually-explicit. Nationwide Building Society has pulled a print campaign for FlexAccount. The campaign targets the youth market with three humorous executions and breaks on November 1. It will appear in FHM, Loaded and Max Power as well as girls’ […]
Nationwide Building Society has announced a major job swap between four of the company’s directors. Mike Lazenby becomes the company’s divisional director, marketing. He was formerly divisional director, communications and replaces Tracy Morshead as head of marketing. Morshead becomes divisional director, central retail operations, with responsibility for databases, direct marketing and debt management. He replaces […]
It was a mixed week for Swedish furniture chain Ikea. First the group had to deny it supported the Conservative Party after it supplied the Tory conference with eight free armchairs. Then its “Stop being so English” TV ads inspired an anti-Swedish counter-attack from The Daily Mail and London radio station, Heart. Still, the chain […]
Ikea has appointed Partners BDDH to work alongside lead agency St Luke’s, which holds the furniture retailer’s 6m UK account. BDDH will work on a project for the Swedish retailer which is aimed at various European markets, including the UK. The agency will create in-store branding for the retailer’s newly integrated Home Office and Professional […]
Argos has announced its first major boardroom changes since the 1.9bn hostile takeover by Great Universal Stores three weeks ago. The restructure by Argos acting chief executive Graham Frost sees John Mayhead move from his position as Argos marketing director. He becomes the director with overall responsibility for Argos Business Solutions, which handles the retailers […]
Volkswagen UK unveils its largest single ad push to date this week with a 10m campaign for the new Golf. Advertising for the revamped car, which goes on sale this week, breaks on Friday and was created by BMP DDB. It will coincide with the on-air launch of the car company’s 3m sponsorship of Channel […]
Swedish furniture chain Ikea is to launch an own brand range of in-built fridges, cookers and ovens with products supplied by US consumer electronics company Whirlpool. The eight-strong chain sells Zanussi gas and electrical products in its stores and from its catalogues, but these are to be dropped, according to an Ikea spokesman. The Ikea […]
Channel 4 has secured a deal with German car maker Volkswagen to sponsor its sporting output across the whole of the network. The contract is understood to be worth 3m per year. The initial deal is for a year. The deal is the first of its kind on British TV and the initiative was first […]
Channel 4 has secured a deal with German car maker Volkswagen to sponsor its sporting output across the whole of the network. The contract is understood to be worth 3m per year. The initial deal is for a year. The deal is the first of its kind on British TV and the initiative was first […]
MasterCard is understood to have appointed Publicis to an estimated 12.5m account covering what is described as its non-US “marketing projects”. The agency, which handles the credit card company’s UK branding work, produced ads for its sponsorship of the Euro 96 football championship last year and will handle a similar project for its involvement in […]