Following a five-month pitch process, Subway has selected PHD for its media buying and planning duties in Singapore, Malaysia and Taiwan. PHD will also be tasked with some out-of-scope creative work in Taiwan. The restaurant franchise will additionally involve two new large local agencies handling integrated duties in the growing North Asian markets of South Korea and China.
Mandy Mak, Subway’s Asia-Pacific regional director of marketing, said of the agency changes: “This is part of the overall brand transformation of Subway and the time is right to bring the right agency partners onboard to help us elevate our brand-building initiatives.”
PHD was selected for its strategic thinking around optimal media choices and buying, Mak said, together with its user-friendly tools to implement them.
“PHD showed a very clear understanding of our business and our challenges. The tools that they have in place will help us refine and optimise our media strategy,” Mak told Campaign Asia-Pacific, noting the agency is also well-placed to help with Subway’s post-pandemic pivot to online and ecommerce initiatives.
James Hawkins, CEO of PHD Asia-Pacific, commented: “We’re thrilled to be partnering with Subway in three of their growth markets in Asia. We delivered a strategic solution that combines data-driven insights and human-centric innovation. Coupled with the calibre of our team as well as their passion for the brand, we look forward to partnering Subway in their ambitious and transformative journey.”
“More than anything else, PHD will be a really strong extension of our marketing teams,” Mak added. “We look forward to fun and robust discussions in the months ahead.”
Read the article in full at Campaign Asia-Pacific.
