VMLY&R wins repitch for high profile Department of Transport creative account

WPP’s VMLY&R has been given a timely boost by retaining the UK government’s high profile Department of Transport account after a competitive pitch against others on the Government’s roster (this one is for so-called ‘end-to-end’ campaigns, whatever they may be.)

VMLY&R (mostly as Y&R) has handled the DOT account since 2017 including campaigns against drink driving, mobile use in cars and to promote disability access.

CCO Laurent Simon says: “I was unfortunate enough to have two road accidents when I was a teenager, one on a bike and one driving a car. I was extremely lucky to survive them both and, to this day, it remains a matter that sits very close to my heart. It’s a real privilege to have the incredible confidence and trust from the Department for Transport renewed for all that we do.”

WPP creative agencies have undergone a dramatic transformation under CEO Mark Read with digital specialists VML and Wunderman in the driving seat at Y&R and JWT. While this seems to been effected smoothly enough, their creative performance has been questioned. All of WPP’s creative agencies lost ground in the recent Campaign/Nielsen table of top billing UK agencies.

Read has acknowledged there’s an issue and recently appointed Rob Reilly from McCann Worldgroup as global CCO. The DOT retention is a good opportunity for VMLY&R to demonstrate its creds.