The Recognition Group has launched Sovereign, an integrated agency focused on serving Australia’s defence and aerospace industry sectors.
This comes after the tender for the Department of Defence’s creative and digital account, currently held by VML, went live in February.
Sovereign will target brands in the defence and aerospace sector that sell technical, high-value products and services.
The defence and aerospace-focused agency builds on The Recognition Group’s portfolio of marketing and PR agencies – Recognition PR, Write Away Communication, and Outsource – each of which has operated for more than 30 years.
Sovereign will offer integrated marketing communication and PR services, including digital marketing, brand and lead generation programs, media relations and thought leadership, media training, web development, and graphic and digital design with AI capabilities.
Adam Benson, CEO of Sovereign, said: “Sovereign fills a significant gap in the market. Its comprehensive marketing solutions stand alone as required or integrate into PR programs, giving organisations scalable resources to deliver high-quality marketing campaigns and materials at pace.”
He explained that the agency’s launch is the sector was in response to the “pace and urgency with which the Australian government is assessing, funding, and developing our warfighting readiness.”
Benson noted that there is an “intense government focus on building our sovereign industrial capabilities.”
“That means making sure Australia has the tools, people, and processes required to achieve its defence objectives without relying solely on complex international supply chains, which can be disrupted easily,” he said.
“The role of our new agency is ensuring local and international members of the Australian defence and aerospace industry can present their offerings in a compelling way to government and supply chain peers.
“It’s more important than ever that suppliers in the defence and aerospace sector communicate their value clearly, particularly if they’re not already well known. Their solutions could prove critical in the coming months and years.
“You only have to look at the impact low-cost air and maritime drones are having on battlefields right now as one simple example of how fast and significantly new technologies and military doctrine can change strategic outcomes.”
The Department of Defence‘s lengthy creative and digital pitch is currently underway. The tender documents confirmed the pitch will run until September, with a shortlist announced by May. The second stage for shortlisted agencies will run from May to August, followed by a negotiation period across August and September for the winning agency.
Once a pitch winner is announced, the contract will commence on 1 April 2025 for a period of four years, with the option to extend the partnership for a further two years.
VML won the account in 2018 after previously losing it to Host/Havas in 2013. At the time Host/Havas lost the 2018 pitch – which culminated in a shoot-out between VML, TBWA Melbourne, Clemenger BBDO, and the incumbent Host/Havas – the ADF was its biggest client, and the loss resulted in dozens of redundancies.
“At Sovereign, we understand the gravitas of the subject matter we’re dealing with, the importance of delivering our services in a time of great and confronting change, and how to work with complex B2B organisations,” Benson added.
See also: Defence Force takes creative and digital account to pitch