GroupM retains Yili business, UM picks up some buying duties

A source close to the account confirmed that GroupM will handle 100 per cent of planning duties for the dairy giant, as well as up to 80 per cent of the buying, with UM handling the remainder.

According to the source, GroupM pitched against three other agencies. The business is claimed to be worth in the region of US$300 million.

The Yili win for GroupM comes on the back of Mindshare's consolidation of the L’Oreal media business in China at the end of October.

“The scale of the Yili business, when looked at city by city, is roughly the same as that of L’Oreal,” the source added.