Integrated marketing firm CoActive Marketing Group has completed its acquisition of privately held agency mktgpartners. Financial terms of the acquisition were not disclosed.
CoActive described the purchase as part of its ongoing effort to diversify its client base and transform from an agency built on short-term live events to one that can take over end-to-end marketing accounts.
“It was apparent to us that mktgpartners was a great cultural fit and shared CoActive’s vision of what is possible for brands that utilize alternative media and marketing to connect with consumers,” CoActive Marketing Group CEO Charlie Tarzian said in a statement.
“We fundamentally believe that the combination with CoActive Marketing Group addresses the client need to link strong experiential and digital marketing capabilities,” said mktgpartners CEO Charlie Horsey in a statement.
Tarzian will retain his post as CEO of the new CoActive, while Horsey will become the firm’s division president for entertainment, sports and events.
Both parties do business as full-service integrated marketing communications agencies. Mktgpartners focuses on entertainment and sports marketing, experiential campaigns and promotion and numbers. BIC, CBS, Jamba Juice, Nike VSP and YouTube are among its clients. The New York-based company posted $14.1 million in gross sales and $4.3 million in operating revenue in 2007.
Also headquartered in New York, with offices in Chicago, Cincinnati and San Francisco, CoActive creates integrated campaigns for a client roster that includes Coty, Diageo, Nintendo, Pepsi, Procter & Gamble and SAP. The company reported gross sales of $85.5 million for fiscal 2008 and operating revenue of $34.9 million.
In announcing those 2008 financial results in mid-June, Tarzian highlighted CoActive’s intention to broaden its skill set beyond its experiential roots and move away from project-based revenue streams.
“Over the past eighteen months, we have successfully transitioned our business to the delivery of integrated marketing programs for sustaining clients and away from dependence on one-off events and promotions,” he said, predicting that momentum would continue in the company’s next fiscal year.
Network
