Coca-Cola media business contract lies between Publicis and WPP

WPP is defending its Coca-Cola media business in North America against another major holding company—Publicis.

It is understood that the holding company still retains the business in other markets.

Coca-Cola is one of WPP’s top 10 clients after it won the majority of the business in 2021, which at the time was worth $4 billion. The holding company formed a bespoke unit called WPP Open X to operate as the brand’s “global marketing network partner."

At the time, Coca-Cola chose WPP for its ability to deliver customer experiences both globally and locally. 

WPP Open X created the campaign It's Magic When the World Comes Together for the beverage giant during the Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games. EssenceMediacom handled the media planning and buying.

After a year-long pitch, WPP won the account and the relationship was described as “unprecedented” in its breadth and depth by Coca-Cola in a press release, as well as for the industry “given its geographical scale and reach.”

WPP Open X manages creative, media, data and marketing technology across Coca-Cola’s entire portfolio of brands and its global ventures, including Costa and Innocent. The unit is led by CEO Laurent Ezekiel, chief communications and marketing officer Julianna Richter, global chief strategy officer Chris Binns and chief creative officer Andrew Keller.

Their brief was to change The Coca-Cola Company’s marketing from a majority analogue output to 60% digital and incorporate more experiential work, as well as creating global consistency while localising creative to each market. 

The first year saw Coca-Cola transfer all of its media, creative, social and production into WPP, while the second year added commerce, data and technology influencer marketing and live experience.

Dentsu was selected as a complementary media partner in selected markets. Agencies from within Publicis Groupe and IPG were selected to be part of the "strategic roster," which was expected to account for one-third of all marketing work.

In 2023, WPP assembled a global leadership team from within Grey to lead the account, pulling in talent from across Grey’s global network to work on different briefs. 

Coca-Cola’s brands include Fanta, Sprite and Costa Coffee.