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DFS, one of the UK’s biggest TV advertisers, is consolidating its

entire pounds 20 million television account into Bates UK.

The move ends a period of change for the furniture retailer which has

run ads created by Grey Advertising and a number of different production

studios in recent months. Only a year ago it was on the verge of

appointing Young & Rubicam but pulled out at the last minute.

’DFS has looked at many agencies over the years but Bates’s ability to

consistently produce powerful, no-nonsense, good-looking advertising

that really sells made it an easy choice,’ Andrew Trofimowicz, head of

marketing at DFS, explained.

Trofimowicz made the appointment after working with Bates on a number of

projects. Media, which is split between Leeds-based Brilliant and

MediaCom/TMB, will remain unaffected by the move. The win reunites DFS

with Toby Hoare, Bates UK’s group chief executive. Hoare was the one who

originally introduced DFS to Y&R while he was chief executive there.

The consolidation is expected to lead to more branding work from DFS,

which has relied on tactical ads for special offers and sales. Bates has

a history of successfully combining tactical work with more

sophisticated branding campaigns for retail clients such as B&Q and

Safeway.

DFS has tried a variety of different looks to its tactical ads over the

years, ranging from using household names such as Michael Aspel to

featuring its sofas on a beach. However, rarely has it tried to overlay

more sophisticated branding information.

DFS ranks 21st among the UK’s advertisers in terms of spend and is the

country’s largest manufacturer and retailer of sofas and chairs. Britons

change their sofas less frequently than their cars - every six or seven

years on average. However, TV shows such as Changing Rooms have

stimulated interest in interior decorating in recent years and DFS

hasexploited its specialism in upholstery to boost sales.

Earlier this month, DFS revealed that an 18.5 per cent sales increase

had generated a record interim pre-tax profit of pounds 22.1 million for

the group.