Estee Lauder reviews $400m global media account

by Staff, Brand Republic 18-Jan-08, 09:15

NEW YORK - Estee Lauder, the cosmetics and fragrance manufacturer, has confirmed a review of its $400m (£203m) global media business and is said to be considering three agencies.

WPP Group's Maxus, the US incumbent; Omnicom Group's M2M, which handles the UK, Japan and other markets; and Havas's MPG, a non-roster agency, are all pitching for the account.

The cosmetics giant, which owns the Clinique, Aveda and Aramis brands, wants to consolidate the business, including media planning, buying and digital duties, into one agency.

Its media is currently handled by agencies on a market-by-market basis.

Estee Lauder initially kicked off a global media pitch in April last year, but decided to put it on hold two months later.

The review is being led by Estee Lauder's head office in New York.

The company said that its net sales surpassed $7bn in the 2007 financial year, up 9% from the previous year. About half of that was derived from North America, another $2.5bn from Europe, the Middle East and Africa and roughly $1bn from Asia.