Mindshare MENA has lost its multi-million dollar mediaplanning and buying account with Nissan after OMD UAE won the competitive pitch.
The Omnicom Media Groupowned agency has taken back the media planning and buying account it lost to its WPP rival in 2009.
The account will see OMD run content marketing and performance marketing for both Nissan Middle East and its luxury brand Infiniti.
OMD competed against MediaVest, Initiative and the incumbent Mindshare after Nissan put the account to pitch in November last year shortly after the arrival of new chief marketing officer Fadi Ghosn. The new contract will start from May 1.
“We’re extremely proud of the hard work and dedication we put into devising the right marketing strategies for both Nissan and Infiniti, based on business-driven analytics and real insights uncovered from our bespoke research,” said Nadim Samara, managing director of OMD UAE & Lower Gulf.
“The automotive industry has a lot of room for technology-led innovation and as a team of automotive enthusiasts, we’re looking forward to breaking fresh ground together with the team.”
This is third big pitch OMD has walked away with in recent months. In January, the agency won Jumeirah Group’s SEM brief, followed by the media planning and buying account for Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank in February.
The appointment will mean more global alignment for the Japanese car manufacturer as OMD holds Nissan’s media account globally. The creative account, which is held by the Omnicom-owned TBWA\Raad, has not been affected by the review.
Mindshare has held the media planning and buying business for Nissan’s passenger cars, sport vehicles and Infiniti since winning the pitch against Carat, Interone and the then-incumbent OMD seven years ago.
The agency won the account following a global re-modelling of its business. However, the agency has recently undergone major upheaval with the resignation of chief executive officer Samir Ayoub in January. Chief commercial officer Ravi Rao has since taken over as his replacement.
Nissan was unable to comment at the time of going to print.