Publicis, a French Multinational advertising and communications company, which is also one of Europe’s leading advertising companies has stepped foot in the Sri lankan market in a joint venture with Leo Burnett Solutions Inc.
Leo Burnett is one of the leading advertising agencies on the island.
Nakul Chopra, C.E.O., Publicis South Asia, while speaking about the new partnership said, “Even though the company’s arrival in the Sri Lankan market is late, the company has arrived in the region with the mindset of becoming the leading advertising agency in the region. Sri Lanka has good quality and talented people involved in the industry and we see that the industry itself could move towards a global network of advertising,”
He also added, “I am impressed with the quality of work produced by Leo Burnett Solutions Inc., in Sri Lanka which has received significant recognition at prestigious International awards festivals. I am quite excited about this first step to enter this market and to take Publicis, and the Sri Lankan industry to greater heights.”
Speaking on the Sri Lankan Advertising industry, Mr. Chopra said that the Sri Lankan industry suffers from downsized skills, however this is natural since Sri Lanka is undergoing a cycle of development. In the case of India, the advertising industry itself is a 100 years old whereas Sri Lanka has only 40 to 50 years of professional advertising.
The Managing Director of the LBSL, Ranil De Silva said that the new tie-up with Publicis will give the company and the Sri Lankan industry more opportunities.
The Publicis enterprise in Sri Lanka will be led by Ms. Amrita Pieris. In a career spanning over 15 years, Ms. Peiris has worked with a number of well reputed advertising agency brands in the country through stints at JWT, Lowe LDB (Lintas), and most recently with Leo Burnett Sri Lanka. Ms. Pieris, while expressing her happiness about the new venture, said, “We believe that the Groupe synergy can bring bigger and more meaningful rewards to all the stakeholders. It is a new era and an exciting way of pursuing our business in the 21st century.”
Most significantly, Nestle Private Limited (a leading client of Publicis Worldwide) has awarded the entire Maggi brand to this new partnership. Publicis will handle the Maggi brand in Sri Lanka supported by Leo Burnett Solutions Inc.
Commenting on this partnership with the country’s leading creative agency, Mr. Chopra added, “In the Publicis Groupe, it is our philosophy to work in conjunction with other Groupe agencies, to share resources and to add scale.” He added, “It’s the ideal way to ensure that our clients have the very best team, and the very best resources working for their brands.”
Mr. Ranil de Silva, M.D., Leo Burnett Solutions Inc., said, “We are following global practices and strengthening our resources to deliver the best for our industry in Sri Lanka and to ensure that we more than fulfill our commitments to our clients.” He also pointed out that globally there has been a significant shift in the ways agencies work, from being networks they have grown to become Groupe partnerships.
The two companies will work together to develop the marketing communications industry in Sri Lanka. It is one of the four major advertising holding companies globally which is led by the legendary Maurice Levy.