COMvergence has released its 2026 New Business Barometer for New Zealand, covering the first six months of the year.
The report tracked 30 media account moves and pitches in New Zealand, representing an estimated US$180 million (NZ$320m) in media spend.
Of the total, US$117m related to local pitches and US$63m related to regional or global pitches. Retained accounts represented US$73m or 41% of the spend reviewed.
Agency group results
Publicis Media placed first among agency groups, recording US$22.8m in new business and retentions. This was driven by wins for ANZ Bank (US$16.7m), Lactalis (US$10.2m) and Eli Lilly (US$1.7m).
Publicis Groupe ANZ CEO Michael Rebelo says: “Our continued number one ranking for net new business across Australia and New Zealand reflects the strength of our leadership, the depth of our specialist expertise and the connected capabilities that sets Publicis Groupe apart. Most importantly, it reflects the trust our clients place in us and the commitment our teams bring every day to delivering for their businesses.”
WPP Media followed closely with US$20.1m in total new business, driven by wins for L’Oreal (US$15.6m) and Henkel (US$2.9m). Dentsu placed third with US$11m, helped by its win for Heineken.
Combined, independent agencies won a total of US$53m in H1’26.
Individual agency results
Among individual agencies, Together recorded the largest new-business result, at US$50.8m. This was driven by wins for The Warehouse Group (US$41.4m) and Kiwibank (US$9.4m).
PHD followed at US$30.8m, with MBM close behind at US$29.3m. Wavemaker placed fourth, while Red Star rounded out the top five with US$12m.
Major account activity
It was a busy first half of 2026, with some big account wins being announced.
The largest media account moves and pitches assessed during the period included The Warehouse Group (US$41.4m), Spark (US$38.8m), ANZ Bank (US$16.7m), L’Oreal (US$15.6m) and Heineken (US$12m).
Local versus global pitches
Local pitches accounted for 65% of the New Zealand media spend reviewed during the first half of 2026. Globally, local pitches drove 58% of the media reviews and moves assessed.
The post COMvergence unveils H1 2026 New Zealand new business results appeared first on stoppress.co.nz.
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