Mustoes beats three to Sekonda account

Campaign, Wednesday, 27 May 1998, 12:00am,

:- Mustoe Merriman Herring Levy has prised the Sekonda watches account out of M&C Saatchi. Mustoes beat M&C Saatchi as well as three other unnamed agencies to the £500,000 business after a competitive pitch was called last month (Campaign, 24 April). Sekonda, which is the UK's number one watch brand, called the review as part of a strategic rethink. Mustoes is likely to move the company away from spending the bulk of its budget on television around Christmas in favour of year-round press advertising. Media will remain at Media Solutions. Damien Horner, Mustoes' business development director, said that the agency's appointment signalled a change of direction for the company. he added: "Our new work will emphasise the fashion values of the brand rather than just focusing on price, as much of their previous work has done. This is one of those brands that has always done great ads and we are firmly committed to continuing that." Sekonda has a track record of humorous and sometimes controversial advertising. During its ten years at GGT, the watch brand used Screaming Lord Sutch and Derek Hatton to front films. M&C Saatchi's first commercial in 1995 starred the former poet laureate, John Betjemin, lamenting the lack of sex he had had in his lifetime.