Heineken calls pitch as it rethinks £70m international advertising

by Drew Barrand, Marketing 07-Jun-05, 11:30

LONDON - Heineken is reviewing its multimillion-pound international advertising account out of Wieden & Kennedy Amsterdam and has asked UK agencies to pitch.

The beer brand, which has a global adspend of about £70m, has appointed Agency Insight to lead the search.

The pitch does not affect Clemmow Hornby Inge's grip on the £6m UK business. Although no plans are in place, insiders are speculating that the successful agency's work could be adapted to run in the UK.

In recent months Heineken, which is based in Amsterdam, has been striving for greater global consistency across its campaigns.

The successful agency is likely to have a knowledge of Asia, which Heineken has targeted as its biggest growth market.

In March, Wieden & Kennedy created an ad starring Hollywood actor John Travolta. The campaign, which ran in more than 20 countries, offered consumers the chance to "Live the life of cool". However, just days after it broke, the star revealed he is teetotal.

Last month Wieden & Kennedy lost a pitch against Amsterdam-based agency StrawberryFrog to create advertising to back Heineken's sponsorship of the Champions League.

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