HEINEKEN has completed a global marketing agency review, reappointing dentsu to its decade-long global media mandate and naming Publicis as its global secondary production partner, while consolidating creative responsibilities under three holding companies: Publicis, WPP and Stagwell.
The review, announced on 8 May 2026, restructures how the Amsterdam-based brewer manages creative, media and production across its international portfolio. Creative duties for the flagship Heineken brand were not part of the review and stay with Publicis. The new structure covers global brands Amstel, Birra Moretti, Desperados and Tiger, as well as selected priority local power brands.
“By partnering with a smaller number of world-class agencies, we are creating the conditions for deeper collaboration, sharper strategic focus, and more impactful creativity.” –Jorn Socquet, Senior Director, Global Brand Impact and Growth Transformation, HEINEKEN
Bram Westenbrink, Chief Commercial Officer at HEINEKEN, described the move as central to the company’s EverGreen 2030 Growth Strategy. The objective, he said, is to build a model oriented around “fewer, better and bigger” agency partnerships that deliver greater creative impact, operational efficiency and consistency at scale.
Jorn Socquet, Senior Director for Global Brand Impact and Growth Transformation at HEINEKEN, confirmed the commercial rationale. “Our new agency ecosystem is a key enabler of our ambition to build stronger, more distinctive brands at scale,” he said in a statement issued by the company. “By partnering with a smaller number of world-class agencies, we are creating the conditions for deeper collaboration, sharper strategic focus, and more impactful creativity.”
Dentsu’s reappointment extends a relationship that began in 2016 and survived a competitive pitch. The network manages HEINEKEN’s media across more than 100 markets, including Nigeria, South Africa, the UK, Brazil and India. The retention is a commercial win for dentsu, which has faced pressure from weak international growth and lost Microsoft’s global media account to Publicis last month.
Transition to the new model has already started, with phased implementation aligned to brand planning cycles to protect continuity across markets.
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