The Gem and Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC) has announced OMD as its media agency. The council has taken the advertising route for the first time as they intend to aggressively the diamond market in India. The creative duties of the council are handled by McCann Erickson. The council’s ad spend ranges between Rs 15-20 crore.

The account was handed over to OMD after a multi-agency pitch involving Starcom and Lodestar Universal, informs a senior GJEPC official. According to the GJEPC official, the brand has always been advertising and pushing the gems and jewellery category abroad. But, after the recent ad campaigns and promotions by the Diamond Trading Company (DTC) came to an end, GJEPC took up the initiative of pushing the diamond category aggressively in India.

The Council will promote a national campaign, which will highlight the concept of a single line of diamond jewellery, titled Anant diamond jewellery. The Delhi-6 star, Sonam Kapoor is the official Brand Ambassador of the brand. The jewellery line will showcase rings, bangles, earrings and pendants with small and large diamonds.

The campaign will run for around 16 weeks, from September 2009 to February 2010. The media mix includes TV, vernacular dailies and magazines along with hoardings.

The Council has over 6500 members and primarily focuses on export markets but now aims to boost its sales in Indian markets as well.

Omnicom seems to have hit a hetric as in a period of less than a month; it has bagged three global accounts.

Earlier this month OMD took Monster’s global media-planning and -buying account without a review, and just last week it was awarded telecom giant Vodafone’s $1 billion-plus global media-buying account in 19 regions, including the Czech Republic, Germany, Hungary, Italy and Spain — all regions where they previously held the business — as well as regions in which they weren’t managing the business, such as the U.K., Australia, India, Greece, Ireland and South Africa.

And now Virgin Atlantic has awarded its $30 million-plus traditional and digital global media business to Omnicom Group’s OMD.
Paul Dickinson, marketing director at Virgin Atlantic, said the consolidation was done to develop better brand consistency around the globe.

OMD and RKCR/Y&R both previously held the media and creative accounts, respectively, in the U.K., Virgin’s biggest market. The consolidation effort was initiated from Virgin’s headquarters there.

As part of a global consolidation of its marketing and media accounts, Vodafone-the telecom major company has handed over its media rights to Optimum Media Direction (OMD). Earlier the rights were with Group M’s Maxus.

The account highlights global media-buying across 19 regions, including the Czech Republic, Germany, Hungary, Italy and Spain — all regions where they previously held the business — as well as regions in which they weren’t managing the business, such as the U.K., Australia, India, Greece, Ireland and South Africa.
Thus taking care of European, Middle East and Asia-Pacific markets.

The pitch, which was called for three months ago, and the account has been won by Team Vodafone of WPP (for Europe, West Asia and Africa) and Carat (in the UK). Carat won the business in January this year from OMD.

The account transition from Maxus to OMD will happen over the next few months, as per a Vodafone spokesperson. In India, the advertising spends for the brand is pegged at approx Rs 300 crore.