• by Richard Whitman , Columnist, November 18, 2022

Back in 2020 Walgreens Boots Alliance opted to retain WPP as its global marketing and communications agency after a reassessment. WPP first won the integrated global marketing and communications account in 2017.

The agreement reached two years ago extended to 2022 with options to continue until the end of 2024.

Now that 2022 is soon coming to a close, it appears that Walgreens and Boots have options to seek out new agency relationships—Walgreens is conducting its own media review for U.S. buying and planning.

Walgreens spends an estimated $200 million on measured media annually, 40% of which is earmarked for digital, according to agency research firm COMvergence. That’s a big chunk of the $772 million in net advertising expenses that WBA reported for 2021.

It’s not clear if the broader agreement is being extended to 2024. WPP has been providing services including traditional and digital advertising (creative and media), PR, data/analytics, and other services across the ad-marketing spectrum.

Per the accord, the holding company also said it would work with WBA to leverage a strategic partnership with Microsoft and Adobe to create personalized, omnichannel healthcare and shopping experiences at scale.

Walgreens and WPP both declined to comment.