Omnicom is out of Aldi’s global creative review. McCann Manchester’s 20-year run ends

Omnicom is no longer in the running in Aldi’s global creative review, Campaign reported on 23 October. According to Prolific North and B&T, that ends McCann Manchester’s creative work for Aldi UK after more than 20 years. Aldi said the tender is still running and no final appointments have been made.

Aldi South Group runs the review in 11 markets

B&T reported that the review is led by Aldi South Group. It covers 11 markets, including the UK, the US, Australia, China, Germany and Italy. Campaign says two agency networks remain, but neither publication named them.

In Australia, Enero-owned BMF holds the creative account under an extension and says it will take part. Media is handled separately. Publicis runs Aldi’s global media through Zenith and its “Aldi One” model, which Zenith kept in 2022.

McCann Manchester made Kevin the Carrot for Aldi UK

Prolific North listed some of McCann Manchester’s best-known Aldi work. It includes the Kevin the Carrot Christmas ads, the Cuthbert the Caterpillar social media rivalry and the “Like Brands” campaign. The agency added Aldi’s social media account in 2019.

In 2022, Aldi moved its £60 million UK media account to Publicis’ Starcom but kept McCann on creative. Prolific North says it is not confirmed whether McCann keeps social. McCann Manchester and Omnicom did not respond to its questions.

Omnicom loses Aldi UK a year after buying IPG

McCann became part of Omnicom when the group bought IPG in late 2025. Omnicom is still cutting costs after the deal, and its job cuts will take it to 105,000 staff by the end of 2026. In the third quarter, Omnicom’s media revenue grew while creative advertising shrank.

The next question is which network Aldi picks, and whether McCann keeps Aldi UK’s social media work. Aldi has not given a date for its decision.