JWT Mumbai wins Stevie Award in New York

JWT's Mumbai office has won the prestigious international business awards – Stevie Award – in New York. The agency was conferred the award for the adverts created for brand Philips - ‘Bada TV’ and a finalist certification for the Philips 'DVD - Ramukaka’ TVCs.

Following this development, JWT Mumbai has become the only Indian Advertising Agency to be honoured by a Stevie Award.

Ironically, JWT lost the Philips consumer electronics business to Mudra earlier this month. The business moved because Philips had internationally clubbed its entire business portfolio with DDB Worldwide in 2003. Mudra inherited the Indian side of the account because of its international alignment with DDB.

The Stevie Awards honour and generate public recognition of the efforts, accomplishments, and positive contributions of companies, agencies and business people worldwide.

This awards event commenced in 2002 with The American Business Awards, followed by The International Business Awards in 2003, and now The Stevie Awards.

An elated Tarun Rai, senior vice-president & GM, JWT Mumbai, commented, “We wanted to keep it simple, and yet, give the brand a modern personality in the minds of the consumer. This has been the thrust of all the work we have created for Philips.”

Adds D Ramakrishna, vice-president & executive creative director, JWT Mumbai, “The one thread running across all our work has been the use of life insights, underpinned with humour, making it universally appealing.”

“The impact made by these TV commercials was huge in the marketplace resulting in a huge surge in sales for both categories,” adds Suranjan Das, vice-president & client services director, JWT Mumbai, who headed the Philips account.

A JWT press release claims that the 'Bada TV' campaign resulted in over 60% increase in Philips CTV sales in 2004 over the previous year. The 'DVD Ramukaka' film (which also won the Ad Club, Mumbai EFFIE silver) helped grow the entire DVD category by 1000% in 2003-04.

The Stevie Awards recognise exemplary companies and individuals among the press, the business and marketing community, and also the general public. The New York Post calls the Stevies "the Oscar Awards of the Business World."

JWT is among India's biggest communications company with interests in advertising, public relations, direct marketing, design and social and rural communications. It operates through offices in six cities and works with several blue-chip Indian and multinational companies including Apollo Tyres, Berger Paints, Cargill India, Diamond Trading Co., Ford India, Frito Lay, Glaxo SmithKline, Godrej, Hero Honda, Hero Cycles, Hindustan Lever, HPCL, ITC, Kellogg's, Kingfisher, LIC, McDowell & Co., Mico Boar, Nestle, Pepsi Co, Pizza Hut, Reckitt Benckiser, Spice Communications, TISCO.

What's more, JWT India works with 26 out of the top 100 super brands as ranked by the annual Brand Equity Survey, 2004. Out of these 26 super brands, JWT India handles two out of three of the top brands, three out of the top five and nine out of the top twenty-five brands. © 2005 agencyfaqs!