Publicis Loses Alliance Amc A/C To Equus

The Rs 100 crore advertising agency, Publicis India, has lost the Rs 10 crore advertising business of Alliance Capital Asset Management to Equus Advertising. Alliance Capital is one of the biggest players in the mutual fund market in the country and has a total India exposure of Rs 4,350.73 crore, as of November 2001. The account moves from Publicis Zen's Mumbai office.

Publicis managing director Praveen Kenneth, however, said the agency did not really lose the account but had to give it up because it had a conflicting client in IDBI Principal (mutual fund).

The Rs 62 crore Equus is all set to break the new all-India print campaign for Alliance Capital next week. Suhel Seth, chief executive officer, Equus said: "Though we are beginning with a print campaign, we will, in the course of time, get involved in direct marketing activities for the brand and may even launch a television campaign."

Equus, in the last few months, had acquired several new businesses including brands such as Max New York Life, Domino's and Hindustan Motors.

Alliance Capital Asset Management is the Indian arm of the US-based Alliance Capital International that entered the Indian market in 1995. The company also operates as a foreign institutional investor (FII) in the country through its India Liberalisation Fund which has a corpus of Rs 1,200 crore.