Saatchi & Saatchi, Bangalore, bags TVS Xpress account

Saatchi & Saatchi, Bangalore, has bagged the Rs 2-crore advertising duties of TVS Xpress, pitching its might in a multi-agency joust. While the names of the other agencies in the fray could not be ascertained, sources say there were five Chennai-based agencies in the running for the business.

Confirming the business win, S Subramanyeswar, client services director, Saatchi & Saatchi, Bangalore, said, "We won the business on the back of our track record in servicing automotive businesses. We are the agency that launched the Hyundai Santro brand in India and made a success story out of it. The WagonR relaunch also happened when the brand was in our custodianship; so did its turnaround. Last but not the least, we launched TVS Victor and made it the second largest selling brand in India. The other thing that swung the business our way is our expertise in dealing with start-up operations."

For the record, TVS Xpress is the brand name for a chain of multi-brand car service stations run by TVS Group company TVS & Sons in Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Karnataka. agencyfaqs! learns that the TVS Group, which is among India's leading suppliers of automotive components, is planning to relaunch TVS Xpress in a new avatar - complete with a new brand name and identity - in about a month's time. The relaunch will coincide with the rollout of the brand nationally.

Launched in 2002, TVS Xpresss is an interesting concept from the TVS Group targeting the service market for new generation cars. As the company website states, "The engineering know-how of new generation cars like Santro, Indica, Maruti, Fiat Uno differs from each other and only an expert mechanic can understand its language, communicate with its technology and fix problems with appropriate spares."

TVS Xpress dealerships include a large range of heavy duty, medium and light commercial vehicles, MUVs and cars. The company represents leading manufacturers like Maruti, Hyundai, Ashok Leyland, Fiat, Mahindra & Mahindra, Ford, Honda and Mercedes Benz, and offers a wide range of industrial equipment from Escorts. As part of the TVS Xpress initiative, the company has tied up with leading finance companies to offer its customers a wide range of finance options. The TVS Xpress chain comprises over 50 outlets in the three southern states..

As the company prepares for a national rollout of TVS Xpress, it is also gives finishing touches to its plans "to get into all car needs in a phased manner". © 2003 agencyfaqs!