General Motors confirmed today that it's shopping for more globally orientated creative ideas for its luxury Cadillac brand.
Beyond incumbent Fallon, the automaker will consider pitches from agencies within Interpublic Group, Omnicom Group and Publicis Groupe, a GM representative said. The brand spends nearly $250 million in media annually.
Interpublic, for example, has put forth Campbell Ewald, which used to work on GM's Chevrolet brand, according to sources. Fallon is a unit of Publicis Groupe, but GM expects the holding company to field a second player.
"We went to the heads of those organizations and asked them to consider who they thought would be right for the job," the rep explained.
Cadillac's global vp Bob Ferguson as well as its vp of marketing Don Butler and its advertising director Craig Bierley are among the key decision makers in the review.
The rep acknowledged the effectiveness of Fallon's past creative work, citing an Effie the agency won for the launch of the brand's new ATS model. That said, the brand is seeking more global options as it eyes expansion in markets outside of the U.S. and Canada, which Fallon has focused on.
"We owe it to ourselves to consider bigger and better approaches to the growth of the brand, including global," the rep added.
GM expects the agency players to emerge within a few days. The next step is a series of meetings next month. The automaker could make a selection as soon as May.
Details of the review emerged amid the New York Auto Show and weeks after sources suggested that the Cadillac business was heading to Campbell Ewald—talk that Cadillac denied.
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