PepsiCo Foods retains OMD for China media account worth US$150 million

OMD will hold on to the brand’s media planning, buying and digital business for the mainland.

The account includes all PepsiCo Foods brands including Lay’s Potato Chips, Doritos Tortilla chips and Cheetos.

The news comes as Pepsi announces its intentions to invest $1 billion in mainland China over the next three years in recognition of the country’s status as a rapidly emerging market for soft drinks and snack foods.

A source close to the review said the food giant would have a strong focus on “lower-tier extension” in the mainland in 2010. The company now produces Chinese variations of its Lay’s potato chips including Spicy Crab, Peking Duck and Five Spice Fish.

The source added that packaging will play a critical role in Pepsi’s growth in China over the coming investment period, along with point-of-sale and digital strategies, particularly if it is to infiltrate fourth-, fifth- and sixth-tier cities, where Coca-Cola also has yet to establish a strong presence.

Last November, OMD Shanghai outgunned Mindshare to win Pepsi China’s media business worth an estimated $220 million.