GM plots £60m umbrella work for Vauxhall-Opel

by James Quilter, Marketing 19-Apr-06, 08:30

LONDON - General Motors is planning a £60m pan-European umbrella campaign for its Vauxhall and Opel brands in a move designed to align the two marques further.

The campaign, which is due to run in the latter half of 2007, will promote the manufacturer's range of cars and will be the first time that Vauxhall has used Opel advertising for an umbrella brand campaign.

It marks a further erosion of Vauxhall's independence since Alain Visser was named Opel's executive director of marketing in 2004.

GM has called a pitch for the pan-European work, which will be run from Opel's Frankfurt office. It will be contested by roster agencies Delaney Lund Knox Warren, McCann-Erickson Frankfurt and 180 Amsterdam.

Following Visser's appointment, the car maker began holding pitches for individual marques among its roster agencies, with the work rolled out across Europe by McCann-Erickson.

The latest Vauxhall-Opel ad brief, for the Antara SUV, has been won by McCann-Erickson Frankfurt. The work will be produced in the UK by McCann-Erickson London -- the first time the agency has worked on Vauxhall advertising.

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