NEWS: B-M wins Unilever global PR account

Burson-Marsteller has scooped the global corporate PR account for Anglo-

Dutch conglomerate Unilever.

The agency has beaten off rival Unilever roster agency Shandwick to land

the business which could be worth several million pounds over the course

of a three-year contract. The appointment has yet to be ratified.

The search for an agency to help manage Unilever’s corporate reputation

has been led by Mike Nash, Unilever’s London-based head of corporate

relations.

B-M is thought to have won out over Shandwick because of the strength of

its existing links with Unilever at a time of major upheaval for the

company. A re-organisation in March saw operational responsibility

devolve to the regional level via 14 new business groups. Strategic

leadership was put into the hands of a new seven-strong executive

committee.

Another factor in B-M’s favour was its regional coverage - B-M has over

60 wholly-owned offices in 38 countries, plus 33 affiliates. A key task

of the agency will be to develop an international network linking

Unilever and agency people around the world.

According to Unilever’s brief - which PR Week has seen - the successful

agency would need to work closely with the business group/local company

and the corporate relations department.

It added that a key factor in the choice of agency would be its ability

to ‘support corporate leadership communication’, for example, by gaining

coverage of speeches to target audiences in different markets around the

world.

B-M has a long-standing relationship with Unilever. It has been working

with detergents subsidiary Lever Brothers since last year to create an

infrastructure for internal and external communications.

It has also advised other Unilever subsidiaries such as Elida Faberge

and Van den Bergh Foods, making it B-M’s biggest client.

Shandwick’s relationship with Lever stretches back more than 20 years.

It is understood that B-M’s appointment is unlikely to affect this

relationship or that between other Unilever subsidiaries such as Bird’s

Eye Walls, John West and Calvin Klein. Unilever’s brief makes it clear

that B-M will be expected to work alongside other agencies on regional

or category business