Rapp London has reportedly been appointed by Waitrose to handle a “secret squirrel” CRM project, which it is understood will see the agency develop the MyWaitrose loyalty programme.
The MyWaitrose scheme was developed by Kitcatt Nohr in 2009, but the retailer ditched the agency for the full roll-out in 2013, appointing the now defunct AIS London to the brief.
Initially the loyalty scheme was handled by Field Day, formed from the merger of AIS and Arnold KLP, but this relationship appears to have ended. Waitrose insists this is a new piece of business, however.
A number of other companies also work on the loyalty account, including retail marketing specialist Ecrebo, which signed a five-year agreement in May last year, and GI Insight.
Waitrose declined to comment on the appointment, insisting that details were too commercially sensitive. Rapp is understood to have pitched against a number of agencies, including Lida, MRM Meteorite and Big Dog.
In a statement it said: “From time to time we engage with different agencies to support us on various marketing projects. Details of these projects are commercially sensitive and as such we wouldn’t be able to comment any further.”
Last year, Waitrose shoppers took to social media in their droves to roast the retailer after it axed free cups of coffee or tea for MyWaitrose members.
The writing had been on the wall since October 2015, when Waitrose introduced the cutbacks in a handful of stores in the South East.
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