Mumbai: The Spikes Asia Advertiser of the Year honours a brand that has set itself apart through the quality of its campaigns with consistently high creative communications whilst encouraging and nurturing innovative marketing techniques produced by their agencies across the Asia Pacific region.

This year, Spikes Asia is proud to present the award to Samsonite, the 100 year old global travel luggage brand and the largest in retail sales value.

Samsonite International is engaged in the design, marketing and sale of travel, business and casual luggage as well as travel accessories. Their core brand, Samsonite?, is one of the most well-known travel luggage brands in the world and has been central to the growth and success of the business since it was first introduced in 1941. Over the last century, they have developed and widely commercialised numerous innovations in luggage, establishing key industry trends and adapting to evolving consumer needs.

Their market-leading position is a result of their strong international brand presence, robust investment in advertising, product innovation, scalable distribution and sourcing ability, and high quality products.

Throughout the decades, Samsonite has promoted its hard-side luggage by emphasising its durability with taglines such as ?Strong Enough to Stand On? and ?Tough Luggage for a Tough World?. In recent years, as part of their overall brand strategy, they have turned to more localised marketing across multi-platforms. Their advertising has helped to increase not only their growth and market share but also to continue refreshing people?s perception of their world class brand.

?This year, the Samsonite ?Heaven and Hell? ad won five Cannes Lions, including the Cannes Lions Press Grand Prix. Created by JWT Shanghai, the work has not only put the spotlight on the great creative work coming out of Asia but has also highlighted Samsonite?s willingness to embrace

creativity and push the boundaries in their product communications for the Asian market,? says Terry Savage, Chairman of Cannes Lions, who with Haymarket, organise Spikes Asia. ?We are proud to honour Samsonite at Spikes Asia 2011, and look forward to seeing more inspirational and award winning communications from the brand.?

"On behalf of Samsonite Asia, we are honored to be presented with this recognition by Spikes Asia. Key agency relationships are vital for growing Samsonite?s brand awareness and image in Asia as we strive to increase our footprint in the region?s top growth markets. This acknowledgement is truly the result of the passion and commitment we and our agency partners have for creating innovative and effective advertising that builds our brand and resonates with our consumers," said Ramesh Tainwala, President of Samsonite Asia-Pacific and Middle East. "

Ramesh Tainwala, will be presented with the Spikes 2011 Advertiser of the Year award on 20 September at the Esplanade Theatre, venue for the awards show.

Founded in 1910, Samsonite International S.A. sells its products under two brand names ? Samsonite?, its core brand, and American Tourister?. Samsonite? is one of the most well-known travel luggage brands in the world, and in 2010, Samsonite?s products were sold in more than 37,000 points of sale in over 100 countries through a variety of wholesale and retail distribution channels.