Carat Auckland has won the work of beauty giant, L’Oréal for the New Zealand market, while Carat Australia has retained the media planning responsibilities for the brand across the ditch following a trans-Tasman competitive pitch process.
Prior to the pitch, FCB held the account for seven years in the local market (StopPress understands FCB declined to participate in the pitch).
L’Oréal Australia and New Zealand media director Lyndall Campher says the consolidation of the account was made to give the company a truly integrated approach across all paid media channels.
Carat’s Auckland office will be looking after the account for the local market, while Carat Australia, which has been working with the account since 2013, will continue its work with the brand. Carat has also seen the addition of search and performance responsibilities across both markets.
Campher says it was impressed by the standard of all the submissions and presentations, however, Carat showed great insight and understanding of the business as well as the challenges it faces.
Marketing and category director L’Oréal New Zealand Shannon Watts adds: “We are excited to be starting a new partnership with Carat, tackling the challenges of the dynamic New Zealand beauty market through world-class media strategies and campaigns.”
General manager of Carat Auckland Alex Lawson shares the excitement to be working with L’Oréal in New Zealand.
“The team are thrilled to have been successful in consolidating the account with our trans-Tasman colleagues in what was an incredibly competitive pitch. I’m really proud of what they achieved and the continued growth we have experienced at Carat this year. We can’t wait to get started.”
FCB Media managing director Rufus Chuter says he is “incredibly proud” of what the agency has achieved in working with the L’Oréal team over the last seven years.
“In this time we’ve driven strong business performance, won industry accolades, posted record service scores and built deep relationships across the business,” Chuter said in a statement. “We understand the context to this alignment and, as friends, we wish Shannon, Martin and the whole New Zealand team the very best in their new trans-Tasman agency relationship.”
Shannon Watts, the marketing and category director at L’Oréal, also sent a statement, commending FCB for its services during the tenure.
“FCB Media has been a true business partner over many years with us,” Watts said. “The trans-Tasman alignment is not a reflection on the quality of the FCB Media team or our satisfaction with their work, and we part ways with the highest respect and admiration for the team. Our new agency has big shoes to fill but we’re looking forward to working with them to drive further success”.
