British Gas Flotation: How Advertising Helped Extend Popular Share Ownership

Alison Turner

The `Sid' campaign before the privatisation of British Gas, 1986. The main objective was to stimulate widespread applications for the shares, within the constraints imposed by the rules.
Agency: Young & RubicamAuthor: Alison Turner

British Gas Flotation: How Advertising Helped Extend Popular Share Ownership

INTRODUCTION

This case history demonstrates the successful role which the British Gas pre-flotation advertising played in the marketing of British Gas shares, and shows how, as a result of public response to the advertising, the government was able to set the share price at 5p above City expectation, worth an additional 200 million (approx). This in addition to significantly extending the boundaries of share ownership, as over 2 million of the applicants for British Gas shares were 'first-time' share buyers....

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