ADVERTISING: Agency will now handle 7UP as well as Quaker Oats.
When Josy Paul moved from JWT India about one and a half years back to take over as chairman of BBDO India, it didn’t create too many ripples. Yet, within days of taking over, he started working on 7UP – a brand from the Pepsi stables which had moved to BBDO from JWT after a long innings of many years.
Then, in November, BBDO bagged the Quaker Oats account too from JWT. So, in the last 18 months, two Pepsi brands have moved from JWT to BBDO. Not bad for an agency that is a relative newcomer to India.
Bagging the two accounts could not have been easy for BBDO. After all, JWT and Pepsi go back a long time. The agency has done large campaigns for Pepsi such as the Youngistan one last summer and most recently, the Desi Beats campaign for Kurkure. Quaker Oats’ loss is clearly a severe blow. The account was handled by Fortune Communications, which is JWT’s second agency.
In a way, this is a reversal of what is happening in North America, Pepsi’s largest market anywhere in the world. There, the snack food to beverages major shifted from BBDO to TBWA in November. But in India, BBDO seems to be gaining ground.
According to Paul, who has adopted the slow and steady mantra for his agency, the two Pepsi brands are the biggest names in his portfolio. “Both 7Up and Quaker are key accounts for us and we will continue to do good work on it.”
The breakfast cereal category is an emerging one and stands at around Rs 300 crore. Quaker faces competition from big names like Hindustan Unilever and Nestle as well as domestic players such as Mohan Meakins and Baggry’s.
Paul feels that the category is set to grow even further and is upbeat about the communication strategy for Quaker: “We as an agency are still new in India and working on these brands will be pivotal for us.”
BBDO, which is a part of the Omnicom Group, got Paul on board about 18 months back. Meanwhile, JWT, which has had a sombre year by its standards, will continue to handle other Pepsi brands.
Paul is extremely excited to be working on brands like Quaker and 7UP and is looking forward to taking BBDO to the New Year on a high. “Getting new brands like Quaker means that we have made a good beginning and want to continue the good work,” he says.
As for Pepsi, it remains to be seen, how its association with JWT pans out in 2009. JWT executives, on their part, will try to ensure this year that they do not lose any more account to BBDO or other rivals.
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