The Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) pitch, that lasted nearly nine months, is over with WPP the victor, securing the media and creative account worth US$475m over Publicis and Omnicom in the final phase to oust Accenture Song (creative) and Omnicom (media). WPP will be responsible for Defender, Discovery, Jaguar and Range Rover – for “end to end marketing communications and services, across all channels globally.”

The mandate was expanded during the pitch process to include media planning and buying, bringing together capabilities that have traditionally been handled by a number of agencies and specialist partners. JLR is a major global advertiser, with significant spend across regions including the UK, Europe, North America and China. 

Accenture Song will continue servicing the account through the middle of the year, ensure a smooth handover while Jaguar undergoes an electrification expansion. The decision supports an ambitious brand reset, that includes a reimagining of Jaguar as an all-electric luxury brand and Land Rover as a symbol of modern luxury, capability and design. By the same token, WPP has invested heavily in bringing creative, media, data, commerce and technology capabilities closer together, often under specialist client teams such as Open X.