Update: Carat wins consolidated Kraft/ Cadbury media business in China

Carat beat out Cadbury incumbent Starcom for the consolidated account, thought to be worth upwards of US$40 million,of which Cadbury accounts for roughly half, according to data from Nielsen.

“We have reaffirmed Carat in China as our media agency for 2010,” a spokesperson from Kraft Foods Asia-Pacific said. “As part of our usual business practices, we continuously review and assess the most effective ways for us to leverage our scale and partner relationships across the Asia-Pacific region.”

The win follows news last week that Carat Melbourne had taken the consolidated Kraft/Cadbury account in Australia, worth an estimated $12.8 million. Carat took the business from long-term Kraft incumbent Mindshare. Carat already works on the Cadbury account in Australia,

The two pitches have fuelled speculation that the merged Kraft operation may be looking to consolidate its media partners across the region, following Kraft’s aggressive acquisition of Cadbury in February this year.

“Kraft/Cadbury is certainly looking at finding synergies and consolidating media is one area they are looking at closely,” said Nick Waters, Asia-Pacific CEO of Carat’s holding company Aegis Media. “At the moment Kraft appears to be taking a market-by-market approach.”

A source close to the Kraft business in Asia pointed out that in both China and Australia, the client consolidated the full portfolio with the agency handling the larger portfolio, to achieve efficiency in fees and costs.

A representative from Starcom agreed, saying there was no formal pitch for the business in China, with the agency instead asked to submit costings.

The bulk of Kraft’s media in the region is handled by Mindshare. In most Asia-Pacific markets except India, Kraft has a larger market presence than Cadbury, which would make Mindshare favourite to consolidate. In India, the Cadbury business is held by Madison Communications.