O&M Guangzhou wins appliance-maker Hisense in China

The agency won the account following a competitive pitch and will be responsible for Hisense’s strategic brand positioning and developing its brand communications and promotions in China.

The pitch began in November and involved three international 4A agencies. The incumbent for the account was a local agency.

Hisense’s business is the “largest and most significant win for the Guangzhou ad agency in recent years”, Ogilvy said in a statement.

Hisense, a multinational state-owned electronics manufacturer, is based in Qingdao and holds three main brands: Hisense, Kelon and Ronshen.

Specialising in consumer electronics, home appliances, telecommunications and information technologies, Hisense claims the capacity to produce 16.1 million colour TVs, 9.2 million air-conditioners, 10 million refrigerators, 700 thousand freezers and 4.9 million mobile phones annually, drawing in US$8 billion in 2009.

In the past, the company has worked with Grey Worldwide Beijing.

Among Hisense’s biggest competitors in the market is Midea and Haier, the world's fourth-largest white-goods manufacturer, also based in Qingdao.

The news comes in the same week that Midea handed its creative account for its electronic appliances to Y&R Guangzhou.

Haier one year ago held its own creative pitch for its China account. Ogilvy & Mather was also involved in that review.