Adland was rumbling
this morning after the news that one of Australia’s biggest
advertisers, Coles Myer, has yanked its flagship Coles supermarket
account from powerhouse agency Young and Rubicam in favour of a tiny
six-person agency called The Solomon Partnership.

According to this story by Julian Lee in this morning’s SMH, the
lucrative account it values at $15 million – but insiders say is
actually worth closer to $60 million in total – was moved “without a
pitch after a quiet review by Coles headquarters.” The paper reports
that in early 2003 David Solomon, former general manager of marketing
at Coles, picked up the $10 million Bi-Lo supermarket ad account, a
move that “raised eyebrows in an industry used to pitching ideas to get
business.”

When Crikey broke the news to a senior advertising
exec, he said: “Crikey! That’s an amazing decision. If Coles wishes to
become a branded goods marketer it seems to make little sense to hire a
retail specialist agency.”

So why did it happen? Rumours are swirling that Coles hated its latest campaign featuring former Blue Heelers
star and three time Gold Logie winner Lisa McCune. The ads featured
McCune stalking the supermarket aisles, hanging out with the staff and
exploring behind the scenes of, among other exciting locations, the
fruit and veggie aisle and the meat freezer.

Hamish McLennan, chairman of Y&R Australia and New Zealand, part of the listed London-based WPP Group, told the SMH:
“Losing is never good for any organisation but we are on track for a
record year. That’s life in this business. You get over it and move on.”