Publisher Harper Collins is looking for its first UK ad agency and has hired broker Agency Assessments to help. A three-strong shortlist consisting of Young & Rubicam, Banks Hoggins O’Shea and Simons Palmer Denton Clemmow & Johnson has been drawn up for the £1m-plus account. The publishing house will concentrate the majority of its ad […]

National Science Week is upon us, comprising a range of initiatives to educate old and young alike but is it really in the interest of scientists to enlighten Joe Public?

The Chelsea Partnership has developed a press, and potentially poster, campaign for fishing tackle manufacturer Ryobi Masterline to improve the image of angling. The risquécampaign challenges traditional views of the lonely, cold, angler sitting by the riverbank without so much as a nibble. The four executions include Go F*** Yourself, and Spice up your marriage, […]

Gatwick airport is jumping on the loyalty scheme bandwagon with the launch of its frequent buyer programme, BonusPoints, on April 3. The British Airports Authority is using Gatwick as a testing ground before BonusPoints rolls out nationally. Each time passengers park their car, exchange currency, eat or shop at the airport, they will be able […]

Growing competition between named and own-label brands has taken retailers and manufacturers into new areas of the loyalty business. The rise of own-label products has forced brand manufacturers to establish new ways of relating to their customers – trying to attract them with samples, vouchers and mailings, as well as traditional advertising, before they even […]

The Manchester Evening News is running a poster campaign through J Walter Thompson Manchester using a combination of high profile figures and visually arresting editorial shots to promote the new design of the paper, as well as increasing the stature of the news content. The aim is to make the paper a serious competitor to […]

Chris Boulding refers to AGB Mediaspan in his article “Drowning by numbers” (MW March 10) as a product which links Superpanel purchasing data with BARB data by assuming similar demographic households behave alike, and therefore “the direct impact of airtime exposure remains a mystery”. Nothing could be further from the truth. In fact, Superpanel and […]

Safeway is thought to be rolling out its ABC loyalty card into about 50 stores competing head on with Tesco, which launched its own Clubcard scheme last month. This would bring the number of Safeway outlets with the card to more than 70. The company would not comment directly on the claim, but said: “We […]

Eurotunnel continues to be rocked by top-level changes in the UK with the sudden departure this week of its recently appointed director of sales and marketing Neil Cooper and the resignation of marketing manager Amanda Hill. Cooper became UK sales and marketing director just before Christmas when Eurotunnel split the UK and continental Europe role […]

Retail chain Dixons has drawn up a shortlist of four to pitch for its ú45m business (Register-MEAL). The candidates are the New Saatchi Agency, J Walter Thompson, D’Arcy Masius Benton & Bowles and the incumbent Saatchi & Saatchi Advertising, a

John Turturro as Maurice, Robert DeNiro as Charles and Stephen Fry as Charlie Scott – the Saatchi & Saatchi saga has hit Hollywood. So Diary thought it right and proper to think up some casting suggestions for the UK end of the story. Former London chairman David Kershaw could be played by Bob “it’s good […]

The airlines have always been one step ahead with rewards for frequent flyers, but the different schemes on offer can be confusing, once you get down to the small print. What exactly do travellers gain?

Playing a major role in loyalty schemes and looking like coffee table glossies, customer magazines no longer extoll the virtues of goods no-one wants, but give consumers information relevant to their lifestyle.

Tesco’s recent successes have put Sainsbury’s on the defensive. Ivor Hunt, Sainsbury’s marketing chief, is the man charged with freshening the image of a firm accused of resting on its laurels.

Interbrand chief executive Michael Birkin is to replace Peter Jones as head of Omnicom’s Diversified Agency Services (DAS) in Europe. Jones will remain as president of DAS – the fastest-growing part of the Omnicom empire – but devote more of his attention to the US. Birkin becomes European director at the end of April. The […]