US account changes dominated global creative new-business activity in the final two months of 2023, according to Campaign Advertising Intelligence.
Creative account moves worldwide were attached to billings worth $4.85 billion in total in November-December 2023, of which the US represented 71% at $3.44 billion.
The US accounted for the five biggest creative pitches, four of which were won by Publicis Groupe.
Publicis’ MSL retained Nespresso, valued at $677.8 million, and sister shop The Community snapped up Taco Bell, worth $422.1 million in billings.
Meanwhile, Digitas was added to the roster of a technology client, valued at $356.7 million, and Leo Burnett took drinks company Molson Coors from Omnicom’s DDB, worth $342 million.
Outside Publicis, independent agency Mother retained the account of US fast food chain Sonic Drive-In, valued at $300 million.
In Europe, creative billings from total account wins grew by more than a third (37%) compared with November-December 2022, rising from $570.9 million to $782.8 million.
Notable reviews included two wins for Publicis; French agency Marcel and Leo Burnett in Spain both retained the business of an automotive client valued at $290 million and $181.1 million respectively.
Meanwhile, independent shop Croud won Ford, worth $30 million, and Nando’s ($20 million) both in the UK.
Media activity soars in Europe
Globally, billings attached to media reviews dropped by 17% in November-December 2023, down from $6.25 bi a year earlier to $5.17 billion.
In the two-month period the three biggest media reviews were in the US. Lowe’s Home Centers swapped one Publicis shop for another; Spark Foundry won the $532 million business from Starcom.
Starcom retained Kellanova (formerly Kellogg Company) worth $320 million, and Dentsu’s Carat took Papa John’s from Havas Media, worth $255.4 million.
North America’s new-business media billings totalled $2.02 billion between November and December 2023—including $1.92 billion in the US—but this was down by a third compared with a year earlier ($3.16 billion).
Europe took the pole position over other regions after its overall billings attached to media account changes came to $2.27 billion—up 61% from $1.41 billion a year earlier.
A series of new agency appointments by German supermarket Lidl dominated new-business activity in Europe.
Starcom retained the business in France, valued at $176 million, while Omnicom’s OMD retained the UK portion, worth $120 million, and Havas Media held on to the account in Germany, valued at $101 million.
Lidl’s sibling supermarket Kaufland also reviewed some of its media business in Europe. It appointed WPP’s Wavemaker to its account in Germany, worth $125 million.
Volkswagen in Switzerland was another notable move. The $70 million business switched from EssenceMediacom to independent shop Webrepublic.
Publicis leads creative
Publicis’ wins in the US contributed to it being the holding company with the biggest new-business billings for creative out of the “big six” global agency groups.
Billings climbed by 7%, from $2.44 billion in November-December 2022 to $2.61 billion a year later, representing 54% of the global creative total.
WPP also had a strong period after billings climbed by more than a third (38%) to $671.1 million, up from $486 million.
The spotlight was on VMLY&R (now VML, following a merger with Wunderman Thompson), which landed healthcare brands Boehringer Ingelheim and Genentech in the US, valued at $60 million each.
Elsewhere, the agency won the Federal Office for Foreign Affairs for the German government, valued at $45 million, and Wunderman Thompson snapped up Aldi in Spain worth $20 million.
Interpublic was the third most active of the global agency groups after new-business billings reached $453.4 million—four-times higher than in November-December 2022.
The holding company’s biggest wins came from the US. Papa John's was valued at $255.4 million and moved to Interpublic’s The Martin Agency from Havas’ Camp & King. The Martin Agency also won pharmaceutical’s company Sanofi, worth $50 million.
Meanwhile, FCB won Burt’s Bees and Danone, worth $69 million and $30 million respectively. Outside the US, Google was a notable win for FCB in Brazil worth $10 million.
WPP’s media new business grows
WPP was the only big-six holding group to see an increase in worldwide media activity in November-December 2023. Going against the global trend, billings climbed 20%, from $934.7 million in November-December 2022 to $1.12 billion in the same two months in 2023.
Wavemaker retained personal care company Church & Dwight in the US, valued at $189.6 million, and Perfetti—owner of Mentos and Chupa Chups – in China worth $86 million.
Fellow WPP agency EssenceMediacom held on to Tui in the UK, valued at $60 million.
That said, Publicis was the most active of the big six, according to media new-business billings.
Publicis’ global total stood at $1.76 billion in November-December 2023, a 27% drop on the $2.40 billion at the same point a year earlier.
Along with Kellanova and Lidl, Starcom also retained BMW in China, valued at $250 million, and retailer Tailored Brands in the US worth $40 million.
Omnicom took third place with media billings of $483.1 million. It had the most drastic drop in activity compared with the other in the big six. Billings in November-December 2022 were two-thirds higher at $1.43 billion.
A notable move was Chery Jaguar Land Rover, which moved its $83.3 million account in China to Hearts & Science. Incumbents included WPP’s Mindshare and Dentsu’s iProspect. Meanwhile, OMD won coffee retailer Tchibo in Germany, valued at $48.2 million, as well as Lidl.
Campaign Advertising Intelligence tracks global new business and works with COMvergence on media wins and R3 on creative wins. COMvergence began supplying media data in May 2023; all data before this was from R3 and direct submissions. Billings from wins could appear some time after the new announcement due to the data verification process, while the figures may also be amended at a later date. Some account names were not disclosed due to client confidentiality.
[This article first appeared in the Campaign US]
