Handbag.com, the joint internet venture backed by Boots and
Hollinger Telegraph New Media, is reviewing its advertising account held
by J. Walter Thompson.
The site offers news and discussion on items of interest to women such
as arts, careers, news, relationships, travel, health and beauty.
Alicen Stenner, the head of marketing at handbag.com, said: ’The site
had a fast launch and JWT was appointed for convenience because it
handles the advertising for our parent companies. We are happy with the
work JWT has done but now seems like a good time to take a look at other
agencies.’
Stenner expects to have made a decision on the business before
Christmas.
Handbag.com was one of the first female-focused sites to go online when
it launched in October, backed by an advertising campaign through JWT
that carried the line, ’a woman is lost without her handbag.com’. The
advertising ran across press, radio and posters.
Three million free handbag.com CDs were distributed in Boots’ 1,400
stores nationwide providing free internet access plus a self-guided BBC
Webwide lesson.