IPG’s Initiative and Dentsu’s Carat have both been awarded a slice of the West Australian government’s $65 million spend.
The government account is broken into two entities – campaign and non-campaign – each with its own agency roster.
Carat has retained its long-standing position on the agency panel for all campaign work, which accounts for approximately 90 per cent of overall spend. It will now share the roster with the newly-appointed, Initiative, who joins in place of the incumbent, OMD.
Carat CEO, Paul Brooks, said of the win: “This is a fantastic win for Carat – testament to the trusted working relationship our Perth team has established with the WA Government over the last five years.
“As a client, they have an enormous appetite for a progressive agency offering. I’m proud that Carat’s breadth of capabilities and expertise continues to evolve at a pace that sees us holding off the competition on this prestigious account.”
Officially starting its new assignment on July 1st, Initiative will be handling media strategy, channel planning, media buying and other related media assignments for the WA Government. As a result of the competitive tender, Initiative will be the sole agency for non-campaign services and will also oversee campaign services media investment on a two-agency panel model alongside Carat, which was retained on the panel at the conclusion of the tender process.
Luke O’Sullivan, head of Initiative Perth, said winning the lion’s share of the WA Government media portfolio was one of the most important moments for the agency and an important new responsibility. “We are naturally thrilled with this win, but we do not underestimate the importance of the tasks at hand in Government communications. We will ensure the agency continues to deliver the most efficient and effective media performance in the market,” he said.
