Shaw Wallace puts Royal Challenge and Director's Special on the block

Shaw Wallace & Co, one of India's leading manufacturers of alcoholic beverages, has put the creative duties of two of its brands - Director's Special Whisky and Royal Challenge Beer - up for review. While no confirmation on this was available from the company, agencyfaqs! has learnt that four agencies - including Publicis, St Luke's and incumbent Lowe (the name of the fourth agency could not be ascertained) - are in the fray for the Rs 15-crore business. For the record, the media duties of these brands remain with Initiative Media.

The first round of the strategy-cum-creative pitch happened earlier this month. The second - and probably the decisive round - will take place over the next two weeks. Informed sources say the brief to the prospective agencies was to lay out ways to reposition the two brands. The company's effort at identifying a new advertising agency - and strategy - comes in the wake of a series of hectic management and marketing initiatives undertaken by it in recent times.

In line with the recommendations of management consulting agency McKinsey, Shaw Wallace undertook a major restructuring-cum-reorganisation exercise last year to consolidate its core business of alcoholic beverages. Thereafter, the company relaunched many of its old products like Antiquity, Royal Challenge, Director's Special (DSP), DSP Black, and Old Tavern Whisky, sprucing them up with new packaging. White Mischief vodka and London Lime gin have also undergone a revamp and a relaunch.

From the international portfolio, Shaw Wallace (in association with the UK-based liquor major Kyndal International), introduced a range of new products in India. These include Findlaters, one of Scotland's most well known Scotch brands, Vladivar vodka, Veba, UK's fastest growing ready-to-drink low-strength alcohol beverage, and Papillon. A range of Origin French Wines including red, white and sparkling wine, and Golden Mist, a range of red and port wine, have also been introduced to cater to the budget conscious Indian consumer.

Viewed against this background, the significance of the pitch as part of the company's efforts at ‘market definition' becomes apparent. The company is expected to announce the name of its new agency by March end. © 2003 agencyfaqs!