- Andrew McMains

A request for proposals in General Motor's review of creative ad duties on Cadillac is due back this week and, based on submissions, the client will narrow the field to 6-8 shops, sources said.

Sources estimate that about 15 shops received the RFP, including Interpublic Group units McCann Erickson in Birmingham, Mich., and San Francisco, Draftfcb in Chicago, Gotham in New York, The Martin Agency in Richmond, Va., and Mullen and Hill, Holliday, both in Boston; Omnicom Group units DDB in New York and Goodby, Silverstein & Partners in San Francisco; Dentsu's Mcgarrybowen in New York; and Publicis Groupe's Leo Burnett in Chicago and Publicis-backed Bartle Bogle Hegarty in New York.

Not all the agencies will return the document, however. Burnett and Goodby, for example, are not expected to reply. The agencies either declined to comment or did not return calls.

Major media spending on Cadillac totaled nearly $240 million last year and more than $80 million in the first eight months of 2009, according to Nielsen. Those figures don't include online spending.

After narrowing the field next week, client executives will visit shops before selecting a handful of finalists the week of Nov. 16, said sources. Final presentations are scheduled for early January.

The incumbent, independent Modernista! in Boston, is not defending.

Ark Advisors in New York is managing the search. Ark declined to comment and the client could not immediately be reached.