Anchor Electricals appoints Initiative as media AOR and Leo Burnett as creative AOR

The accounts were won by respective agencies post a multi-agency pitch.

Anchor Electricals, a wholly owned subsidiary of Panasonic, which makes low-voltage electrical switches and accessories, switchgear and protection devices, wires and cables, lamps and luminaries, and fans, has appointed Initiative, from the stable of IPG Mediabrands as media agency and Leo Burnett India as creative agency.

Initiative will be responsible for the media strategy, planning, buying and implementation for all brands under Anchor Electricals for both mass media and out-of-home. The account will be managed by the agency’s Mumbai office.

The size of media account is Rs 100 crore. OMD India is the incumbent agency on the account.

Commenting on appointing Initaitive as media agency, Vivek Sharma, managing director, Anchor Electricals, the electricals arm of Panasonic, says in a press release, "Anchor by Panasonic is a leading electrical brand in the Indian market with sales of INR 3550 Cr in the current financial year, through a diverse product portfolio spanning seven product verticals. As a company, we are strategically aligning ourselves to substantially improve consumer connect. AEPL would aggressively use mass media in building saliency and creating awareness for its businesses in the months to come. We, at AEPL, are happy to partner with Initiative in this exciting phase of growth".

"We are confident of Initiative's domain knowledge and media buying clout. Their considerable experience in the South Asian markets will help us deliver enhanced brand communication and drive media efficiencies for AEPL", he further added.

Vaishali Verma, chief executive officer, Initiative, says in a press release, “This is one more prestigious addition to our esteemed portfolio of clients. We look forward to working with Anchor and create cutting-edge, strategic media solutions. Working with an ambitious company like Anchor is a great challenge and we look forward to creating impactful business solutions through our proprietary global tools.”

The creative mandate that has been won by Leo Burnett, will be handled by agency's Mumbai office.

Commenting on appointing Leo Burnett as creative agency, Sharma adds, “We were looking for a partner whose innovative ideas and approach are in sync with our brand's vision. We have partnered with Leo Burnett India as our new creative agency based on their strategic planning and innovative creative thinking. We believe and have complete faith in the team's passion, commitment and their ability to do justice to our mandate. We look forward to a stronger collaboration and are confident that the partnership with Leo Burnett will help us further strengthen our ability to reach out to our existing and potential consumers with influential and relevant communication."

Dheeraj Sinha, managing director – India and chief strategy officer – South Asia, Leo Burnett, says in a press release, “It's a great opportunity to re-energise a brand that has tremendous local equity in the name ‘Anchor’, and now has the advantage of global expertise in the name of ‘Panasonic’. Our opportunity is to build a brand and a business in this category like it has never been done before."

Rakesh Hinduja, executive director and branch head – Mumbai, Leo Burnett India, says in a press release, “We are looking forward to partnering a legacy brand like Anchor by Panasonic. The brand has an unparalleled equity and its ambition to double its turnover excites us. I believe there is a lot of untapped potential that lies ahead, especially in the category as a whole. With Leo Burnett’s innovation-oriented and culture context approach, our focus will be to make Anchor by Panasonic the premier choice for electrical solutions in the country.”