Virgin Group has started building the launch team for its new urban hotel brand. The company says it has a development team within its management division that is overseeing the plans.
Citi has appointed Egg launch marketer Patrick Muir as head of marketing for its UK consumer business. He will be reunited with the Egg brand, which Citi acquired from Prudential last year. Muir replaces Alison Wright, who left the business in February without a job to go to. He will report to Bert Pijls, country […]
Moving People, a consortium of mental health charities, is understood to have appointed Miles Calcraft Briginshaw Duffy to handle its £7m advertising business. It follows a four-way pitch against M&C Saatchi, Euro RSCG and an undisclosed regional agency. The consortium is made up of Mind, Rethink, Mental Health Media and the Institute of Psychiatry, King’s […]
The AA and Saga are poised to appoint Phd to handle the two brands 30m consolidated media planning and buying account following a review against fellow incumbent Carat.
Five, the RTL-owned broadcaster, has created a digital agency roster ahead of a year-long revamp of its online businesses. The move follows the appointment of Made By Many as its lead strategic agency last year. Agency.com, which worked with Five on the development of video-on-demand service Demand Five, Taglab and LIDA have been appointed to […]
Orange is to cut jobs, improve customer service and up its broadband offering under plans unveiled by new chief executive Tom Alexander. The France Telecom-owned mobile operator announced the plans today (June 4). Alexander will also expand Orange’s retail network but cut 450 jobs across areas including administration and management as part of a plan […]
Kingfisher, Europe’s largest home-improvement retailer, has reported an 8.9% increase in retail profit to £96m, in the three months to May 3. The rise has been largely attributed to cost cutting measures and a decrease in its number of promotions. However, sales were weak in the UK, falling 5.8% to £997m in its B&Q stores, […]
Starwood Hotels has appointed Oliver Bonke its senior vice-president, sales and marketing for Europe, Africa and Middle East (EAME). He previously held the same role at its Asia Pacific division. Bonke, who takes over the role next month, will oversee global sales, brand marketing, revenue management, external communication, online marketing, creative services and customer contact […]
TradeDoubler appointed Vizeum managing partner Ben Wood as UK managing director. He will take over the role from Jim Brigden, who was head of Tradedoubler and The Search Works, but will now focus on the latter.
Vauxhall is replacing the long running Little Dads ads for the Zafira and Meriva with a new campaign focusing on the flexibility of the two cars.
Orange is expected to scrap its “The Future’s Bright” strapline, as part of a series of sweeping changes by its new chief executive, Tom Alexander. He will lay out his new strategy tomorrow (June 3). The new strategy is expected to cost the mobile phone and broadband company several hundred UK jobs in a bid […]
Taylor Nelson Sofres and GfK have agreed a “merger of equals” to create the world’s second-biggest market research company with a market value of about £2bn. The move is a snub to WPP Group, which launched a £950m takeover proposal for TNS but was rejected within 24 hours. The plan to merge the companies was […]
Online shopping is booming despite the tough economic climate on the High Street, according to Verdict Research’s UK e-Retail 2008 report. It says that online spending increased by 35% to 14.7bn last year. The trend is expected to continue as internet access grows and consumers buy more things online more often. It forecasts that online […]
Global newspaper circulation rose by 2.57% last year and advertising revenue also recorded a 0.86% increase, according to the latest figures from the World Association of Newspapers. The trend was not seen in the UK with circulation for last year down by 3.46% compared to 2006 and down by 11.14% compared to 2003. Advertising revenue […]
TIML Golden Square, the new owner of Virgin Radio, has appointed Albion to create and launch its new brand. The group has already announced it plans to invest £15m in the relaunch of the station. It won the business after an informal pitch that included a number of undisclosed agencies. The new brand will be […]