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Ferrero Group, the chocolate company encompassing the Kinder, Nutella and Tic Tac brands, awarded its U.S. media management duties to Dentsu Media agency iProspect at the end of February.
Given the agency already manages the majority of Ferrero’s budget outside the U.S., this win solidifies iProspect’s place as Ferrero’s media agency of record.
A source with knowledge of the review outcome spoke with ADWEEK about it on condition of anonymity. The incumbent, according to the source, was GroupM agency Mindshare.
The win makes Ferrero iProspect’s largest client—the type of account Dentsu Media’s been aiming for since undergoing drastic organizational changes last year. In December, iProspect won Ferrero’s international markets spanning the U.K., France, Germany, New Zealand and Thailand—the result of a separate review.
The Ferrero global account is worth an estimated $1.4 million, according to COMvergence data. In December, Dentsu won billings worth $598.3 million, Campaign reported. The brand split the rest between other partners Mindshare and Publicis Groupe. Of Ferrero’s total billings, North America accounts for an estimated $180 million.
Ebiquity, a consultancy with expertise in media investment strategy, managed the review process, a source confirmed. Ebiquity could not be reached for comment.
iProspect and Mindshare both declined to share details of the win, deferring comment to Ferrero.
“We can confirm that the Ferrero Group has announced a new partner to support its buying and media services in the U.S., but we are not providing any further comment at this time,” a representative wrote in an email to ADWEEK.
iProspect’s new era
The Ferrero win is a significant achievement for the media group, which includes agencies Carat, Dentsu X and iProspect, following a period of change. In August, Dentsu Media’s longtime CEO, Doug Rozen, resigned. Sean Reardon, previously the U.S. and global CEO of programmatic media firm MiQ, took over the executive job in December.
That move symbolized a bigger strategic shift for Dentsu Media. Namely, that the media group is integrating its agencies—and especially iProspect—with Merkle’s offering.
