Talks with Bates are “at an advanced stage”, according to a WPP source, although other networks remain in the frame. 10AM chief executive and ECD Lim Sau Hoong would not confirm WPP’s involvement. A deal with Bates would give 10AM a stronger foothold in China and Taiwan, where it services clients such as CCTV and China Merchants Bank, said the source. It would also allow the agency to export its brand to other markets in Bates’ footprint.
Meanwhile, Bates, not WPP’s strongest network, would gain from 10AM’s creative firepower and strong reputation. 10AM started out in 2000 with just 10 staff. Led by Lim, former CD of Ogilvy & Mather Singapore, Beijing and Shanghai and ECD of BBDO Singapore, the agency is now 25-strong and has collected awards at all the top international shows.
Campaigns for Bank of China, Sony Ericsson, Guinness and Nippon Paint have won trophies in a variety of media, although a solitary Promo Lion at Cannes 2006 (‘White puzzle’ for Red Bull Singapore) is 10AM’s only major gong of the past two years. 10AM has been courted by potential buyers for some time, although rumoured deals with Omnicom’s TBWA and then WPP’s Y&R — which teamed up with 10AM for the Singapore Airlines creative review — have not materialised. Publicis, DDB, Dentsu and BBDO are also on 10AM’s list of past suitors.
Additional reporting by Long Li Yann
