Post split, Hero's corporate account moves to Law & Kenneth

Law & Kenneth will handle the entire communication, post its re-branding.

The much-awaited decision on Hero Group corporate pitch result is out. Following a multi-agency pitch, the creative mandate for the same has been awarded to Law & Kenneth.

Post its split with Honda Motors, Hero Group decided to create a new brand identity for itself which would include a new logo and a new look for the corporate brand. The job of creating a new brand identity was assigned to the Omnicom group design agency Wolff Olins.

However, the two-wheeler major also needed a creative agency to communicate the new brand identity, for which it called for a pitch for its corporate account, last month. The company had shortlisted five agencies for the final round, of which three agencies were part of its roster and had handled one of the Hero Honda brands at some point of time. The three agencies were JWT, Draftfcb Ulka and Percept/H. Besides these three agencies, the other two agencies which were part of the race were Mudra and Law & Kenneth.

Finally, Law & Kenneth bagged the account. The agency's job will start once the new brand identity is created which can be expected in a few months' time.

Previously, the rumour was that the announcement for the new brand identity would be made during the fourth season of the IPL (Indian Premier League), the domestic Twenty20 cricket tournament. However, the plan got delayed for reasons unknown.

For the uninitiated, the Hero Group decided to end its 26-year-old joint venture with the Japan-based Honda Motors in December last year, due to unresolved differences. As part of the deal, Honda sold its 26 per cent stake to the Munjal family.

Back then, afaqs! had conducted a quick poll to gain insight into the ramifications of the Hero Honda break-up at the brand level.

Industry experts were asked to rate the brand value of Hero and Honda, based on the premise that the value of brand Hero Honda was 100. Brand Hero garnered a score of 67, while brand Honda pulled in a score of 59.

Even in the past, whenever an Indian company split with its international JV (joint venture) partner, the outcome has been mixed. While some Indian brands gained from the split, many had to succumb to the divorce. For instance, when Bajaj and Kawasaki decided to part ways, Bajaj bounced back after an initial downtime. Even TVS held its own, post its fallout with Suzuki.

On the flip side, when Honda and Kinetic split up, Kinetic had a major setback and was eventually bought over by the auto major Mahindra. Similarly, Eicher Group's motorcycle brand Rajdoot faded after Yamaha abandoned the ship.

Till the time of filling this report, neither the agency nor the company was available for any comment. However, reliable sources close to the development confirmed the same to afaqs!

For the record, Hero Honda celebrated 25 years of its existence in 2009 with a corporate campaign created by JWT. A majority of the Hero Honda Motors business is divided between JWT and Draftfcb Ulka, while Percept/H handles Passion Pro and occasionally, some corporate projects.

The media duties for Hero Honda Motors are handled by Maxus.