China leads Bosch creative review

Bosch has invited agency networks to pitch for a branding project in China, with JWT and Saatchi & Saatchi in the running.

The engineering and white goods giant is believed to be looking to align its global creative arrangements, with the winning network in contention for additional advertising work in India and key markets in Europe.

The pitch will be handled from Bosch's Stuttgart headquarters in collaboration with its management team in China, where the company has been heavily investing.

JWT, the incumbent in the mainland, will repitch for the business. Saatchi & Saatchi, which pitched for the Bosch business in 2004, is also in the running.

JWT has held the account in China since 2004, where media spend is reportedly worth US$12 million. The Shanghai agency picked up some work from Bosch after it won the business jointly with JWT Frankfurt.

Bosch is one of the world's largest electrical goods makers. It re-entered China in the mid 1980s and has invested $1 billion in the country through automotive and building technology. Its revenues grew by 12 per cent in China last year, to US$1.8 billion.