Initiative Media gets the job

Initiative Media has won the £15 million (€19 million) Diageo media account. The low-profile media buying agency headed by Mr Dave Harland already has several international accounts including Unilever and Johnson & Johnson.

The Diageo account covers media buying for all Guinness products as well as Gilbey's, R&A Bailey and United Beverages in the Republic and in Northern Ireland.

During the drawn-out pitch process, the agency was not regarded as favourite to win Ireland's biggest media account. Its main competitor at the pitch, AIM/Carat, already holds £10 million of Diageo's business, buying media for Guinness and Gilbey's. This business will transfer to Initiative once the contract begins on January 2000.

As Mr Albert Reynolds famously told the Dail Committee of Public Accounts last week, the dogs in the street are some of his best customers. And it would seem they are a fairly discerning bunch where their grub is concerned.

C&D Foods, Mr Reynolds's pet food factory in the midlands, has recently undergone a £5.5 million expansion and the company is relaunching Max, its flagship brand. C&D is one of the most no-frills corporate names around - C&D stands for cat and dog - and the company enjoys a modest presence in Ireland's £60 million pet-food market. It makes most of the own-label supermarket brands for the UK, however.

The Irish Times, in association with Irish International Advertising, has hatched a smart Christmas fundraising idea, with all proceeds going to the Simon Community.

The plan is that instead of sending Christmas cards, companies can publish their festive greetings in December on two pages of The Irish Times which the newspaper is donating to Simon.

To be included on the page companies must pay at least £1,500 - the cost rises depending on the size of the company logo. Even at that it is a fraction of the cost of a major Christmas card mail-out and Simon hopes to raise £100,000 from this House of Cards Appeal. Once all names and logos have been received the pages will be designed by Irish International. Call 1 800 654 321 for details.