Conduit Hldg Regulatory News (CRE)

13 Dec 2006 07:03

Creston PLC13 December 2006 Date: 13 December 2006On behalf of: Creston plc ("Creston" or "the Group")Embargoed until: 0700hrs Tullo Marshall Warren (TMW) lands Nissan Europe Following a three-way pitch, TMW, a Creston company, has been appointed to workacross all of Nissan Europe's (NE) direct marketing communications. This willinclude not only the development and execution of all CRM activity for thebrand, but also the build and management of one centralised database that willbe the backbone to all of NE's direct marketing. The account is thought to beworth up to €6 million of fee income per annum, making it one of the mostsignificant pitches of the year. Up until now, TMW has worked for Nissan GB. However, the appointment of TMW nowmarks a significant change of direction for NE in terms of how it markets thebrand across Europe. Helen Perry, who helped to oversee the process at NissanEurope comments, "The purpose of the pitch was very much about identifying waysof improving the consistency of Nissan's CRM brand delivery and its measurementas well as leveraging best practice throughout our markets". Latterly, Nissan has become one of the most profitable automotive manufacturersand has launched a range of exciting new vehicles. These include the 350Z andthe soon to be launched QASHQAI. These and other planned new vehicle launches in'07 provide a distinctive offering in the marketplace. In context of this exciting product line-up, NE will now be looking to furtherstrengthen the brand across Europe, whilst implementing a better qualitycustomer experience. To support this, there will be a greater emphasis onleveraging prospect and customer data, including the building of a new databasethat will consolidate all marketing information. In tandem, NE has created atotally new sales and marketing infrastructure that sees the creation of 8 newRegional Business Units (RBUs) across Europe. It is against this backdrop that TMW has been appointed to support a more costeffective and structured approach that will have centrally planned strategy andcreative execution at its heart. Whilst TMW is one of the leading direct marketing agencies in the UK, it doesalready have existing pan-European clients such as British Airways, Reed MIDEMand VisitBritain. The appointment by NE further strengthens its pan-Europeanactivity. As Richard Marshall explains, "This pitch was very much about a freshand innovative approach. We were the only agency to pitch for both the data andCRM elements and by being appointed to deliver both, we believe that we canachieve a more strategically integrated solution". "We've also developed a new 'virtual network model' that shows that clients nolonger need to rely on bricks and mortar country by country. Our centralisedstrategy team will work closely with NE in Paris and will sit within theiroffices in Trappes. Our Client Partners, based in London will provide regionalsupport for local market needs, also working very closely with the centralisedteam to ensure consistency. Meanwhile, the TMW Hub in London will provide themain infrastructure and support, working closely with all other dedicated teammembers". NE has a number of new product launches coming up in '07 and TMW will beinvolved in supporting these with immediate effect, including the launch ofQASHQAI which takes place in February '07. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT: Creston plc 020 7930 9757Don Elgie, Chief Executivewww.creston.com Redleaf Communications 020 7822 0200Emma Kane/Sanna Lehtinen/Susan Quigley NOTES TO EDITORS: • Publication quality photographs are available through Redleaf on the numbers shown above. About Creston Plc - Creston's strategy is to build a diversified international marketingservices group through a combination of organic growth and selectiveacquisitions. The Board's aim is to identify synergistic benefits betweencurrently independent marketing services companies offering premium servicessuch as market research, direct marketing, advertising, public relations,research and digital; and to build a diversified Group that offers clientssolutions to both existing and future marketing needs. - Creston's companies boast a range of blue-chip clients including the AA,AstraZeneca United Kingdom, BA, Bacardi-Martini, Bayer, BT, Burger King, Canon,COI Communications, Cow & Gate, Diageo, Ebay, General Motors, George Wimpey,GlaxoSmithKline, Halifax, Kimberly-Clark, Lloyds, Lloyds Black Horse, Morrisons,Nestle Rowntree, Nissan, Pfizer, Norwich Union, Roche Diagnostics, ScottishCourage, Tesco, Toshiba, T-Mobile, Tropicana, Unilever, Vodafone, Walkers andWHSmith. - Creston's share price is quoted in the Financial Times, The DailyTelegraph, The Times and the London Evening Standard. This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock Exchange