Coca-Cola has hired St Luke’s for a special project developing a
global brand that would sit alongside Classic Coke. The agency has been
asked to present Coca-Cola with a strategy that could form the starting
point for the development of a brand with a cultural reach as wide as
Coke’s. Marketing
The Halifax has appointed Philip Hanson general manager, marketing.
Hanson joins from Tricon Restaurants International which, until last
month, was part of the PepsiCo Group. He joined PepsiCo in 1992 from the
Boston Consulting Group, having been at United Distillers where he was
brand director for Johnnie Walker and Rowntree Macintosh. General
release
Michael Biden, the former sales and marketing director of BT’s personal
communications division, has been appointed chief operating officer at
Ionica. Biden, who quit BT last year after differences with the
division’s managing director, joins from Hays, the business services
group. Marketing
Unilever is to launch a new haircare range, ThermaSilk, which will
compete against Procter & Gamble’s market-leading brand, Pantene. The
launch will be backed by a global ad campaign through J. Walter Thompson
with a spend of dollars 82 million. The brand will appear on US shelves
from next February, although plans for a UK launch are yet to be agreed.
Marketing Week
Bupa has appointed Pat Stafford marketing director to replace Bruce
Tranter who stepped down last month. Stafford joins from Corporate
Positioning Services, a strategic and marketing consultancy. She has
previously held roles at British Airways and Mars. General release
Fox’s Biscuits is teaming up with the children’s TV programme, Sesame
Street, to launch a biscuits range. Three lines - Alphabics, Snack Tub
Buddies and Monster Cookies - will feature the character, Big Bird.
General release
BMW is to develop a UK banking service, making it the first car brand to
offer a full range of financial services in the UK. BMW, and its
subsidiary, Rover Group, already operates BMW Bank in Germany. BMW aims
to capitalise on its image as a solid and trustworthy company and
reposition BMW as a ’service brand’. Marketing
The Abbott Mead Vickers group’s integrated agency, Momentum, has
acquired the O’Connell Partnership. Its clients include Avon, Kerrygold,
Levington Horticulture and Next. General release
Tesco hopes to introduce an initiative that will run in conjunction with
the forthcoming Independent Savings Account scheme. ISAs will supersede
Peps and Tessas next year and Tesco wants to offer customers the chance
to convert their loyalty points into ISAs. The Guardian
Wang, the desktop integration and services company, has appointed Simon
Jacobson director of communications for Europe, Africa, the Middle East
and Asia. Jacobson, who was previously Digital’s UK corporate
communications director, will be responsible for positioning Wang as a
major provider of IT services. General release
Martin Hayward, the managing director of Bartle Bogle Hegarty’s
strategic arm, is to take the role of head of consumer consultancy at
the Henley Centre. He joined BBH in 1995 to set up its strategic
marketing arm, BBH Futures, and his assignments included pan-European
strategic projects for Walt Disney and Ikea. He will be responsible for
all consumer-focused research at Henley. Marketing
The Union and the Media Business Scotland have won the pounds 1 million
account for Martin Currie, the Edinburgh investment management group. A
new campaign is expected to break in January concentrating on the
company’s range of investments and unit trusts. - General release.
