As well as Sands’ flagship Venetian and Sands Macao resorts, the review covers further hotels and shopping and entertainment within the Cotai Strip, including brands such as the Four Seasons, Conrad, Sheraton and Holiday Inn, which Sands built.
Ogilvy & Mather Hong Kong has held the account for the past seven years. The business is believed to be worth around US$50 million. In addition to Ogilvy, Grey Shanghai and Saatchi and Saatchi Shanghai are competing for the account. R3 is managing the pitch process. Presentations are expected to take place at the end of August, according to a source close to the review.
R3 declined to comment on the proceedings. Sands plans to open a new resort on the strip next year, the Parisian, which will offer 5,000 rooms and a replica of the Eiffel Tower. Sands' primary competitors on the strip are City of Dreams and the Galaxy Macau.
Sands recently posted a second-quarter profit increase of nearly 30 per cent despite a year-on-year fall in gambling revenue for Macau as a whole in both June and July according to Macau’s Gaming Inspection and Coordination Bureau.
In June, Sands appointed ZenithOptimedia to handle its offline media duties in China.