PR sees growth in M&A activity worldwide for 2016

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M&A advisor Results International has revealed that PR M&A activity grew globally last year.

In 2016, there were 77 deals in total which is up from 75 in 2015. In addition, Results International’s analysis highlights there were 35 deals involving UK and European businesses in 2016, up from the 29 seen in 2015.

There were also five “repeat acquirers” of PR agencies in 2016. Four Communications, Santy integrated, SEC, WPP and Publicis acquired two PR companies each.

PR groups were also active acquiring businesses in other areas marketing and communications, RI notes. Finn Partners acquired brand strategy, creative services and digital marketing agency Greenfield Belser; Ruder Finn bought insight and analytics consultancy Daylight Partnership; and Japanese agency Vector acquired integrated marketing agency PacRim Marketing Group.

Nearly a quarter of all activity (23%) involved cross-border transactions. PR was the joint second-strongest sector in marcomms for the number of M&A deals, only behind full-service digital and equal with integrated agencies.

Keith Hunt, managing partner at Results International, said: “PR has had to face businesses in social media, content and digital encroaching on its space over the past few years, so a number of PR groups have reinvented themselves to fight back. Some have done so by specialising in niches such as healthcare and technology, while others are moving into other areas of marcomms to build up their broader expertise through M&A.

“Several of these businesses are beginning to change the way they refer to themselves, using terms like ‘integrated’ and ‘digital’ to show that they do more than just traditional PR. Acquiring assets in other areas of marcomms is a great way to begin or reinforce that transformation.”

Hunt added: “2016 was another very solid year for M&A in the sector and we wouldn’t be surprised to see more consolidation and activity in 2017. In fact, we may see the management consultancies that have already dipped their toes into the marcoms industry looking to PR businesses as a great way to get more of the C-suite access they crave.”

The Portuguese Cork Association hands UK PR brief to Clarion Communications

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The Portuguese Cork Association (APCOR) has brought in Clarion Communications as its UK PR agency, following an international tender for the promotion of cork stoppers, which has seen contracts also awarded in 10 other countries, including the US, China and France.

APCOR has brought in Clarion Communications as its UK PR agency

APCOR has brought in Clarion Communications as its UK PR agency

APCOR represents and promotes the Portuguese natural cork industry, which it claims is the largest in the world and accounts for more than 62% of global cork exports.

Clarion Communications’ UK brief is to strengthen the existing consumer preference for cork stoppers by promoting their benefits.  Natural cork is the best stopper to preserve and enhance the characteristics of wine, according to APCOR.

Activity will include a series of consumer-facing campaigns to encourage wine shoppers and the wine trade to prefer natural cork.

The agency will also engage with opinion formers though an education campaign, encouraging them to pass on the story of cork and its benefits.

APCOR chairman João Rui Ferreira said: “2017 will see the first campaign we have carried out in the UK for six years, and we hope that this will mark the start of a longer term investment as premiumisation becomes more and more important for the wine trade.

“The response to our tender from agencies within the UK was the highest in the world. We were impressed with Clarion’s strategic response to our brief and felt that the campaign presented will put us in pole position to strengthen the preference for cork stoppers in the UK.”

Philippa Wynn-Green, managing partner at Clarion Communications, added: “This was a hugely exciting and challenging brief and we are thrilled to be working with APCOR to deliver fantastic creative campaigns which will influence perceptions of cork and get people considering the stopper when they choose their wine.”

P&C PR promotes Schools OUT UK and LGBT History Month

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P&C PR is handling the PR, on a pro bono basis, for Schools OUT UK, the UK charity behind LGBT History Month, which is currently taking place. The charity is marking the 50th anniversary of the partial decriminalisation of male homosexuality this year.

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LGBT History Month 2017

Schools OUT is a membership-based organisation that began life as The Gay Teachers Association in 1974. Its aim is to make schools and educational institutions safe spaces for lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans (LGBT) communities, from teachers to students.

P&C PR plans to promote the free resources available to educators to enable the ‘usualising’ of LGBT people throughout the curriculum.

In 2005, Schools OUT UK founded LGBT History Month. Every year since, in February, schools, colleges, youth groups and local authorities across the country celebrate the lives and achievements of lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans people – both past and present.

This year’s theme is Citizenship, PSHE and Law, as 2017 marks the 50th anniversary of the partial decriminalisation of male homosexuality. Last year’s theme was Religion, Belief and Philosophy.

P&C PR will also raise the profile of ‘OUTing The Past’, the third National Festival of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Trans History, which started last week (February 4) in Coventry.

It will also develop strategic media campaigns to market Schools OUT UK’s commercial website and magazine, OUTburst, as well as promote the charity’s founder Professor Emeritus Sue Sanders of the Harvey Milk Institute.

Sanders said: “It was apparent from the first meeting between P&C and me that we were both ambitious and passionate about the LGBT community, thus eager to deliver a positive difference.

“At a time when the right is baying at our heels and when homophobic attacks have increased since Brexit by 147%, the importance of ‘Educating OUT’ prejudice, by providing free resources and a national festival of LGBT history is vital.”

Amelia-Eve Warden, CEO of P&C PR, added: “When we discussed the brief with Sue, we certainly believed this is something that we personally and professionally are passionate about. One in four people in the millennial LGBT generation experience hate crimes in the community on a regular basis.

“We believe we can deliver awareness and solutions with the amazing content generated by the charities to push their resources into the media and expose them widely across the country. Securing this account is a great start to an ambitious year for us, so with our recent opening of an LGBT-based internal team, we are looking to secure many more accounts in this space.”

In November, Warden, a former Hotwire employee aged 21, partnered with senior Deloitte associate Bethany Simpson, aged 23, to launch P&C PR, which they claim makes them the UK’s youngest  PR agency owners to date.

Newgate appoints Bread PR’s Louise Nicolson as partner

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Newgate Communications has appointed Louise Nicolson as a partner in its corporate team.

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Louise Nicolson

Nicolson, who has started the role, has become a senior strategic adviser to a number of clients in the extractive industries, technology and private equity arenas.

In addition, she has secured a new client in the form of clinical-stage biotechnology company NovaBiotics, on a long-term project basis.

Nicolson will be responsible for developing Newgate’s capabilities in employee engagement and internal communications.  She reports to senior partner and vice chair Deborah Saw.

Gavin Devine, chief executive at Newgate, said: “Bringing Louise into our senior team is a tremendously exciting development.  Not only does she augment our capabilities in respect of employee engagement and internal comms, she is a seasoned strategic advisor to a whole range of clients.  She is already making a big impact and I am certain she will play a major role in our on-going fast-paced development as a business.”

Nicolson added: “There is a palpable buzz in the Newgate team as we work hard to deliver brilliant counsel to clients and build something special.  I am thrilled to join Newgate at such a critical time in the firm’s development.”

Yellow Jersey advises on Eco (Atlantic) Oil & Gas IPO

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Yellow Jersey PR is advising Eco (Atlantic) Oil & Gas as it makes its IPO today on AIM.

Eco Atlantic is an oil and gas exploration company, focusing on the identification, acquisition and development of petroleum opportunities in politically stable and “technically de-risked jurisdictions” around the world.

It has an estimated market capitalisation of approximately £19m.

Felicity Winkles, director of Yellow Jersey PR, said: “Eco is one of two IPOs we – as an agency – are due to get away this week. Today has kicked off well with coverage across the business pages of the national newspapers. We look forward to tonight’s QCA Awards, where we have been shortlisted as Best PR Firm for a third consecutive year.”

HEMA appoints LEWIS for corporate support

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Dutch retailer HEMA has appointed LEWIS to be its corporate PR partner for Europe.

HEMA has plans to expand and accelerate its international operations with the opening of stores in the UK, France, Spain and Germany. LEWIS will support the openings and provide maximum media exposure for HEMA for each opening in these countries.

LEWIS has already supported several HEMA store openings on a project basis, including flagship stores at Stansted Airport and in Euston (UK), Hasselt (Belgium), Madrid (Spain) and, most recently, Cologne in Germany. The LEWIS Amsterdam team will be coordinating the support across Europe, giving HEMA a single point of contact for all international activities.

Arnold Drijver, head of corporate communications at HEMA, said: “We have had a very positive working experience with the LEWIS team in the past year. On top of this, LEWIS has offices in all the markets we are active in which makes coordination and cooperation most efficient. In every country we have had the opportunity to work together and we have found them to be very enthusiastic and supportive.”

Yvonne van Bokhoven, SVP Western Europe at LEWIS Global Communications, said: “We are thrilled to further extend our cooperation with HEMA in 2017. We love the HEMA brand, and are all fans. It is great to see how a much loved Dutch brand like this is very well received in other cultures too. We are absolutely delighted to be part of its international success story.”

4mediarelations reappointed for World Travel Market London

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4mediarelations has been named the official broadcast partner for World Travel Market London 2017 for the 5th year running.

4mediarelations has been named the official broadcast partner for World Travel Market London 2017

World Travel Market London

Its reappointment comes after it secured more than 300 pieces of coverage across the three-day event last year, including BBC 5 Live, Radio 4, BBC World Service and BBC Scotland.

4mediarelations says organisations that benefited from its broadcast PR activity last year included the Egyptian Tourist Authority, Destination Canada and global car hire company Europcar.

The on-site studio at the event hosted celebrity spokespeople such as Tracey Edwards, Michael Portillo and former cricketer Sir Viv Richards.

More than 1.1 million business meetings took place over the three days, according to 4mediarelations, and deals worth more than £2.5 million were agreed.

For the first time this year, 4mediarelations will also take on a TV brief for World Travel Market London, which takes place from 7 to 9 November at ExCel.

Paul Nelson, press and PR manager at World Travel Market London, said: “We selected 4mediarelations again as our official broadcast partner mainly because of its vast experience in the travel sector and previous broadcast support at WTM London 2012, 2013 and 2016’s highly-successful event.

“Its dedicated team will ensure WTM exhibitors truly get the most out of WTM London 2017. We look forward to working with 4mediarelations again over the next few months and hope for a successful and fruitful WTM London 2017.”

Darren Ryan, associate director at 4mediarelations, added: “We are extremely pleased to have secured the levels of coverage we did for World Travel Market London 2016 and are delighted to be selected as the official broadcast supplier again for WTM London 2017.

“The 2016 event was a huge success which built on the success we achieved previously in 2012, 2013 and 2015. This year, we are also pleased to be handling all global TV editorial opportunities as well. Working alongside the team at WTM London, our ultimate goal again this year is to maximise the radio and TV broadcast opportunities that exist for all exhibitors during the three day 2017 event.”

Mystudenthalls.com hires Rooster

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Mystudenthalls.com has chosen Rooster to enhance its position as the UK’s first and “most comprehensive” student halls search engine.

Mystudenthalls.com has chosen Rooster to enhance its position as the UK’s first and "most comprehensive" student halls search engine

Mystudenthalls.com

Mystudenthalls.com allows students to contact their desired halls directly without having to create a user account.

Rooster has been briefed to develop a media strategy for the brand, as well as run the company’s press office function.

In addition to managing media enquiries, Rooster will focus on generating quality coverage in key national, regional and consumer media titles through news and content generation.

Dan Roberts, MD of Mystudenthalls.com, said: “We were really impressed by Rooster’s media expertise and strategic recommendations to increase our profile among students and property partners.

“The team has hit the ground running and we’re already working on some exciting campaigns to raise awareness of Mystudenthalls.com among our target audience.”

James Brooke, MD at Rooster, said: “This is a really exciting brief for us and we’re proud to have been appointed by the UK’s original dedicated student halls search engine. We’re looking forward to implementing some successful campaigns to raise media and consumer awareness of Mystudenthalls.com throughout 2017.”

Scott Storey Outdoor Living and James Grace hire The Lucre Group

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The Lucre Group has won two PR briefs from Scott Storey Outdoor Living, which launches this year, and James Grace, a specialist in bespoke staircases.

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Tamarind Wilson-Flint

Scott Storey Outdoor Living, which specialises in non-wood decking, is due to launch later in 2017.

Lucre will support the launch of Scott Storey Outdoor Living and raise the profile of the brand as it grows and establishes its place in the UK market.

James Grace has briefed Lucre to enhance awareness of the brand and expand its digital footprint across both PR and social media.

It will focus on media engagement, content provision and social media support.

Both account wins are the result of recommendation without a pitch taking place, according to Lucre.

Tamarind Wilson-Flint (pictured), co-owner and director at Lucre, said: “These brands are a perfect complement to our existing portfolio and with both having such exciting plans for 2017 it is a wonderful time for us to join their teams.

“James Grace is a best kept secret which has already firmly established itself as number two in the market and has its sights firmly set on being the market leader in 2017.

“Scott Storey Outdoor Living is a US concept which is being brought to the British market and will transform how we utilise our outdoor spaces at home.”

Rostrum hires first PR apprentice

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Tania Correia

Rostrum, the corporate PR agency, has announced that it has hired its first PR apprentice Tania Correia.

Correia joined Rostrum after finishing her A-Levels and was chosen out of a number of candidates, having demonstrated ability to draft content and pitch to the media during the interview process.

She is part of the corporate team at Rostrum and will work across a range of sectors including SME finance, legal technology and cybersecurity. She will be with the agency for 15 months where she will complete her Level 4 PR diploma.

Michael Kahn, director of resource and development at Rostrum, said: “We felt it was the right time to introduce an apprentice into the Rostrum team as we continue to recruit and train the best and brightest talent. Tania is already proving to be a capable individual and I’m confident she will continue to develop during her time at the agency.”

Correia said: “The experience so far at Rostrum has been a very rewarding one. Not only am I doing a job I really enjoy, my diploma also allows me to learn the theory behind everything I’m doing day to day, which is definitely helping me to progress in my role.”