Elanco animal care switches media after indie-only pitch

Animal medicine and vaccine producer Elanco has appointed December19 as its UK media agency for pet health brands following a competitive pitch among other independent media agencies.

WPP agency EssenceMediacom was the incumbent on the account, which is understood to be worth around £2.5m in total media spend.

The review launched with chemistry meetings in September as the brand sought a holistic service to its media planning and buying for Elanco's consumer-facing brands, which include Advantage Flea And Tick treatment.

December19 pitched against two other independent agencies for the account.

Majella Lavelle, managing partner planning at December19, told Campaign: “We’re absolutely delighted with this new business win – a super client brief, a fully competitive pitch process, well signposted by the intermediary – and one where we have every confidence that we can show them what great looks like.

“We’re looking forward to partnering with the Elanco team to help deliver effective campaigns to grow their business.”