The WPP agency prevailed in a pitch against four Japanese players — Dentsu, Hakuhodo, Asatsu-DK and Daiko.
While Suntory is an established contender in China’s beer category, Ogilvy China vice-chairman Joseph Wang pointed out that its latecomer status in whisky poses challenges.
“Chivas Regal and Johnnie Walker have been in the market for a while and have been investing heavily,” said Wang. “Suntory doesn’t have much presence outside the Japanese community.”
Wang added that the company would be seeking out “different markets, different spots of consumption and different geographies” from its larger rivals. He also pointed out that foreign whisky in general remains at a nascent stage in China. “There is not much whisky or brand culture — they are all referred to as ‘foreign drinks’,” said Wang.
“It’s very image-driven. That will change as people become more knowledgeable.”
Suntory’s mainland beer business, said another source, has also influenced the Suntory brand disproportionately.
“It’s more associated with less-expensive beer. In Japan, it has a very elite, upmarket positioning. The issue is how to develop the brand better.”
The company has said that it aims to expand foreign sales by 120 per cent to 400 billion yen (US$3.3 billion) by 2010, with a priority on China.
