Unilever has completed its global media review, divvying up assignments across the six major holding companies. 

In what was seen by many as a “must win” for WPP, given a number of recent losses, the UK holding company did retain its assignments in the US, UK and China, three of Unilever’s largest markets. In the U.S. the company won an integrated shopper marketing brief previously held by Publicis.  

Publicis Media won five markets in Southeast Asia including Singapore, Thailand, Philippines and Vietnam, which were previously handled by WPP.  

Interpublic, Havas, Omnicom and Dentsu also won pieces of business. 

Unilever is one of the largest advertisers in the world. The company’s total brand and marketing investment last year was around $9.5 billion, according to its 2023 annual report. About $5.2 billion of that was earmarked for measured media according to agency research firm COMvergence. 

The review began in January and followed the appointment of the company’s new marketing chief, Esi Eggleston Bracey in October of 2023.  

Bracey issued a statement:“Thank you to everyone who took part in this process as we prepare for the next generation of marketing. It’s fantastic to accelerate this journey with both new and long-time partners. Together, we have an exciting opportunity to further optimize our media and content to better reflect people and culture as we continue to build our brands and drive to commerce.”   

The company confirmed the new media agency roster:

Mindshare (WPP) 

Australia and New Zealand 

Central Eastern Europe 

China (excluding Hong Kong and Taiwan) 

Indonesia 

Italy 

Netherlands and Belgium 

Nordics 

North America  

South Asia including Bangladesh, India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka  

Sub Saharan Africa   

UK and Ireland 

OMG (Omnicom Group) 

Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates 

Germany, Austria and Switzerland 

China: Hong Kong and Taiwan  

Turkey  

Initiative (Interpublic Group) 

Canada 

Greece 

Latin America including Argentina, Brazil and Mexico 

North Africa 

Ukraine    

Havas Media (Havas) 

France 

Spain   

Publicis Media (Publicis Groupe) 

Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam  

Dentsu 

Japan 

Unilever markets several hundred brands around the world including Persil, Dove, Knorr, Domestos, Hellmann's, Wall's, Ben & Jerry's, Magnum and Lynx.