CheethamBell JWT nets Magnet brief

Magnet, the kitchen, bedroom, bathroom and home office supplier, is switching its £9 million creative account into CheethamBell JWT, ending the company's 16-year relationship with McCann Erickson Manchester.The change is the precursor to new advertising, including a TV campaign that will break during the summer. It follows a pitch that included McCann, Manchester's BJL (formerly Barrington Johnson Lorains) and two Leeds-based shops, Brahm and PWLC. Media planning and buying remains at Universal McCann. Magnet has traditionally relied heavily on price-led advertising. But David Bell, the CheethamBell JWT chief executive, said: "We've come up with a branding idea that has blown Magnet away." Bell insisted the Magnet business would not conflict with JWT in London's B&Q account. "There will be a brick wall between these businesses," he added. CheethamBell JWT has several accounts that could not be handled by its sister agency. They include Reckitt Benckiser and Halewood International, which would clash with Pfizer and Diageo at the London shop. The change of agency coincides with the departure of Magnet's marketing director, Michael Greenhalgh, who led it pitch team with Nick Booth, its head of brand marketing.