EXCLUSIVE: Bonds has put Banjo on alert as it looks to shake up its marketing in 2013, inviting the four rostered agencies on the Pacific Brands agencies to pitch.
Banjo has taken the lead with the underwear brand for much of the last 14-months, since being added to the roster in late 2011, when long-term incumbent The Campaign Palace was booted from the account.
There is also a new marketing boss for the Pac Brands underwear division, with Tanya Deans stepping up to replace Lindsey Evans, who left last October to return to London.
It is understood Bonds has invited the four agencies, which include Clemenger BBDO Melbourne, The Monkeys and AJF to engage on the account, threatening Banjo’s lead status.
Sydney-based independent Banjo has produced a string of work including the acclaimed ‘12 Days of Christmas’ in 2011, the 2012 festive spot, as well as the ‘Zip It’ and ‘Versus’ campaigns.
Clemenger’s work for the brand centered around the Birthday Project, where people were invited to send in their photos and in return receive unique t-shirts printed with their birth dates.
The campaign was so popular the website crashed on the first day, and the backlog of requests took weeks to clear.
According to Nielsen the main media spend for Bonds dropped from $7.4m in the year to January 2012, to $5.4m last year.
