Carat, Initiative share $300m contract

Media buying agency Carat has retained its contract with the Western Australian government, sharing the roster with Initiative, which has also been contracted for non-campaign work.

Initiative has replaced Marketforce's media buying arm, OMD, and Adcorp Australia for the two parcels of work respectively.

The five-year contracts, which follow a six-month competitive tender, cover media booking, buying and planning services for state government advertising.

Carat has retained its position on the agency panel for campaign work, which it said accounted for approximately 90 per cent of overall spend.

The retention follows the recent appointment of new managing director Jim Groves to Carat’s Perth office.

Mr Groves was previously managing director of WPP agency Geometry Global, and before that owned and operated independent creative agency Groves & Groves in Perth.

Carat chief executive Paul Brooks said the renewal was a fantastic win.

“It is testament to the trusted working relationship our Perth team has established with the WA government over the last five years,” he said.

“As a client, they have an enormous appetite for a progressive agency offering.

“I’m proud that Carat’s breadth of capabilities and expertise continues to evolve at a pace that sees us holding off the competition on this prestigious account.”

Initiative Perth head Luke O'Sullivan said the win was one of the biggest moments for the agency, which was expected to add substantially to its local staff numbers to help manage the additional business.

“We are naturally thrilled with this win, but we do not underestimate the importance of the tasks at hand in gvernment communications," he said.

"We will ensure the agency continues to deliver the most efficient and effective media performance in the market.”

Initiative Perth was named Western Australia Media Agency of the Year for 2018