The pitch for the $90 million media account of Spotlight Group, one of Australia's largest private companies, has been decided but not yet formally closed, AdNews reveals.
The agencies involved in the competitive pitch included incumbent PHD, independent Nunn Media and independent Melbourne agency Stratospher.
Incumbent PHD, which has held the business since 2020, confirmed to AdNews it had lost the account to Nunn Media.
But no contracts have been signed with no official appointment made yet, AdNews had been told.
Morry Fraid, the co-owner of Spotlight, has been an active board director member of Nunn Media for more than 10 years.
According to records held by corporate regulator ASIC, a company called NMFT NO 1 Pty Ltd has a 32% holding in the independent media agency.
Fraid and Avi Gilboa, the managing director of Spotlight, are listed as the two company directors of NMFT NO 1 Pty Ltd. The main shareholder is listed as Spotlight Group Holdings Pty Ltd.
Before PHD, Nunn Media had held the account since buying Kruse Media Services in 2013 and did not participate in the 2020 pitch due to “cultural differences”.
The account in 2020 was worth $39 million with Spotlight Group worth $2 billion. The media billings have now doubled according to insiders as the company's worth is now at $4 billion.
The account, hubbed out of Melbourne, includes all retail brands from Spotlight, Anaconda, Mountain Designs to Harris Scarfe.
Spotlight Group's chief financial officer Clint May departed the brand after 26 years in October for David Jones, he was also a board member and non-executive board member of several Spotlight subsidiary holdings. The brand is yet to officially replace him.
Nunn Media and Spotlight had no comment to AdNews at time of publishing.
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