Reckitt Benckiser Retains Zenith, Adds Hearts & Science To U.S. Media Roster

Consumer goods giant Reckitt Benckiser (RB) has its selected media agency partners following its U.S. review. 

The company’s portfolio of brands includes Durex, Mucinex, Scholl, Strepsils, Cillit Bang, Clearasil, Dettol, Harpic, Lysol, Mortein, Veet, Air Wick, Calgon, Vanish and Woolite.

Publicis Media’s Zenith retained the largest portion of the assignment — planning and buying for RB’s Health, Hygiene and Vitamins, Minerals and Supplements (VMS) divisions as well as adding data and analytical services for these three categories. The company spends about $260 million annually in measured media on those businesses, according to comVergence.

Concurrently, Omnicom’s Hearts and Science landed the client’s Nutrition business, previously serviced by Zenith. H&S will begin working on the account — with estimated annual spending of about $5 million according to Kantar — in January 2021.

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RB has benefited enormously from COVID-19 and the increased focus on hygiene and health. Demand for brands like Dettol, Lysol, Sagrotan, Napisan and Airborne, which in 2019 represented around 20% of its portfolio has skyrocketed in recent months. In fact, RB sold 340% more Dettol hand sanitizer — bumping the product from 11th place to become the third best-selling brand today — and over 75 million pounds of extra wipes across Dettol and Lysol have been sold over the course of the pandemic, making wipes alone now 12% of RB’s disinfecting products by value.

It has been a big couple of weeks for Publicis Media agencies on the pitch front. Last week Starcom retained its U.S. Kraft Heinz account with estimated annual spending of $578 million. And TikTok shifted its global media account to Zenith.

RB created its nutrition business in 2017 with the acquisition of Mead Johnson Nutrition. It distributes 70 products, including the Enfamil family of brands.

Pat Sly, senior vice president, North America & Europe, Nutrition at RB, stated: “Hearts & Science was selected as they showcased an enhanced ability to leverage marketing science & consumer connections to help RB over-drive its nutrition business. Through usage of the Omni Platform, it will give RB a real-world view of consumers’ behavior for full-funnel Omnichannel strategy, helping achieve RB’s ambition to grow Enfamil into the #1 infant formula brand in the US-market.”

 

 

 

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