THEY could become the ultimate in manufactured music. Four girls in their twenties have been brought together by Saatchi & Saatchi UK, the advertising agency, as a pop group that can be bought “off-the-shelf” by companies to promote their brands.

Saatchi & Saatchi clients who pay to use the still-unnamed group will have a say in its name, the song style and lyrics, as well as the brands the group wear, drink and eat.

Music industry experts hired by the agency are now grooming the would-be stars.

Supporters of the idea argue that it is an imaginative way for brands to reach young consumers already swamped by traditional advertising, which experts say they instinctively “filter out”.

Others, however, say the idea is cynical, turning the singers into captives of consumer companies unable to show any creativity of their own.

Andrew Wilkie, managing director of Gum, the Saatchi & Saatchi division that created the band, said: “It could be as simple as sponsorship of a tour through to clothing that could be worn, drinks, cosmetics — all that stuff is possible.”

Wilkie added, though, that the agency favoured “subtle” associations with brands that do not dent the “credibility” of the pop group.

Mike Stock, who wrote and produced dozens of hits for the likes of Kylie Minogue and Bananarama as part of Stock, Aitken and Waterman, said Saatchi & Saatchi’s approach “put the cart before the horse”.

“I do think it is a bit cynical — the industry has lost the magic of the maverick, when all of a sudden a record comes off the streets and the kids like it . . . and the industry has to follow them, not the other way round,” Stock said.

Associations between brands and bands have become increasingly close, led by American hip-hop acts such as Busta Rhymes and P Diddy, who in 2002 boosted cognac sales with their hit Pass the Courvoisier.

Any resemblance to existing brands in the stage names of the girls — Mercedes, S-Jay, Rockwell and Chanel — is said to be entirely coincidental.

The four, all from west London, won a place in the band after answering an anonymous advert in The Stage newspaper.

They are Mercedes Gomez, 22, a personal assistant; Sarah-Jane Crawford, 24, a marketing executive at a law firm; Jane Thompson, 25, a club promoter; and Chanel Edwards, 23, a marketing executive at a magazine. None of them has had a previous record deal and they are continuing with their day jobs.

“I’d like people to look at our group and say, ‘Wow, she’s amazing, she’s great, I aspire to be like her’,” said Edwards.

The public will get its first glimpse of the group on a specially scripted soap opera reflecting the singers’ real lives, called a “mobisoap”. Fans will be able to watch the minute-long episodes on mobile phones next month. Wilkie said teenagers would be able to talk to the singers on websites and influence their career progression.

They have already recorded a number of songs in a style variously described as “hip-hop” and “urban RnB”.

Wilkie said: “They’ve had singing lessons, choreography lessons and they’ve been working with fashion stylists.”

Industry experts estimate that Saatchi & Saatchi will need to spend at least £200,000 a year on developing the band. If the girl group idea works, a ready-made rock band and a comedian are also being nurtured.

The agency declined to say which brands might buy into the girl group, but it is understood interest has come from a drinks company, a consumer goods firm, an entertainment business and car makers.

Explore UK News

• Crime News

• Education News

• Health News

• Science News

• Scotland News

Times Recommends

• Sarah Brown says 'no thanks' to veal at G8 - twice
• Stockton-on-Tees is obesity capital of Britain
• Stores blame poor sales on Murray factor