WPP agencies triumph in BP account consolidation

<p>SINGAPORE: BP has consolidated its group brief with MindShare and </p><p>Ogilvy & Mather by asking the two WPP-owned firms - which already work </p><p>on BP - to take on its Castrol brand. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>The move comes 17 months after BP acquired Castrol, which previously </p><p>booked its media through several agencies including FCB, while a roster </p><p>of Asia-Pacific agencies including FCB and Saatchi & Saatchi handled </p><p>creative. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>The Asia portion will be managed from Singapore. Manpreet Singh, </p><p>managing director of MindShareworld, said it was still unclear how large </p><p>an account Castrol would be in Asia. Globally, Castrol is worth </p><p>US$120 million. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Naveen Kshatriya, BP (lubricants) senior executive strategic marketing </p><p>and customer service, said the company felt it could manage its brands </p><p>better if it dealt with one ad and media agency. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>"The new style agency structure helps us manage distinct brand </p><p>personalities while ensuring they still reflect the overall values of </p><p>the BP corporate brand. It also allows us to leverage our adspend and </p><p>resources more effectively, he added. Kshatriya said BP contacted other </p><p>agencies in Asia, "but we felt this was the best way forward". To ensure </p><p>there is no account conflict, MindShareworld will continue to house the </p><p>Shell Oil account at its other media shop Maximize. </p><p><BR><BR> </p>