Stagwell

Stagwell, formerly The Stagwell Group, is a global marketing and communications group. Founded in 2015 by Mark Penn, Stagwell companies operate in four areas: digital transformation and marketing, research and insights, marketing communications, and content and media.[1] In 2020, The Stagwell Group announced plans to merge with its affiliate MDC Partners.[2] The merger was completed in August 2021.[3][4][5]

Stagwell
Formerly
Nasdaq: STGW
IndustryAdvertising, marketing, communications, media
Founded2015
HeadquartersWashington, D.C.
Key people
Websitewww.stagwellglobal.com

Known partners include 72 and Sunny, Anomaly, Soner and Forsman & Bodenfors, Code and Theory, YML and Instrument, Assembly, ForwardPMX and Gale, Allison+Partners, SKDK and Hunter, Harris Poll, and NRG.[5]

History

Mark Penn founded The Stagwell Group in 2015.[6][7][8][5] Penn founded The Stagwell Group with a $250 million investment from former Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer.[7][8][5]

In 2017, Stagwell acquired Forward3D, Scout and also acquired Observatory from CAA.  The company also acquired pilot movie testing assets from Nielsen and combined them with NRG, and acquired mobile research assets from Nielsen to form HarrisX.[9][10]

In 2018, Stagwell acquired Ink and later ReputationDefender. Stagwell also secured a $260 million investment from AlpInvest Partners.[11]

In 2020, Stagwell acquired Seward Square Strategies as part of SKDK,[12] as well as Headliner Labs as part of ForwardPMK.[13]

In August 2021, following the merger of The Stagwell Group with MDC Partners, Stagwell formed Stagwell Media Network, a group of multichannel agencies.[14][5]

In September 2021, ReputationDefender was sold to Norton.

In July 2022, Stagwell acquired Apollo Program, an AI-powered SaaS platform. [15] [16]

Stagwell brought on a retail media division in 2023. This new initiative was started by the European Chief Executive, Matt Adams.[17]

In 2023, Stagwell announced a partnership with political news and polling site RealClearPolitics for the 2024 U.S. presidential election.[18]

Merger with MDC Partners

MDC Partners was a publicly-traded advertising and media holding company based in New York. MDC Partners historically acquired majority stakes in partner agencies, and as of 2021 had more than 50 partner firms worldwide. In 2019, Stagwell invested $100 million into MDC Partners.  Stagwell CEO Mark Penn was then appointed CEO of MDC Partners.[19] On December 21, 2020, the firms announced their intent to merge. On August 23, 2021, Stagwell announced the completion of the merger and the creation of Stagwell Inc. (NASDAQ: STGW) as the merged entity. Mark Penn will continue as Chairman and CEO of the combined company. The merged company will be headquartered in New York, with significant offices in Washington, DC.[20]

References
  1. Smiley, Minda (July 24, 2020). "Marketing Is the Answer Whether You're Growing or Struggling". Retrieved 2021-07-15.
  2. "Stagwell Group organic revenue spikes 59.9% in Q4". www.prweek.com. Retrieved 2021-07-15.
  3. Smiley, Minda (December 21, 2020). "MDC Partners and Stagwell Group Agree to Merge". Retrieved 2021-07-15.
  4. "Stagwell bets on organic growth to power its merger with MDC Partners, as it retires the MDC name". 27 July 2021.
  5. "The Stagwell Group Announces the Successful Combination of Stagwell Marketing Group With MDC Partners, Forming Stagwell Inc. (NASDAQ: STGW)". www.businesswire.com. 2021-08-03. Retrieved 2023-08-15.
  6. "Stagwell's Mark Penn: 'No other holdco, or consultancy, has the right balance'". The Drum. Retrieved 2023-09-21.
  7. O’Reilly, Lara (2018-08-14). "Mark Penn's Stagwell Group Raises $260 Million". Wall Street Journal. ISSN 0099-9660. Retrieved 2021-07-15.
  8. Tadena, Nathalie (2016-05-12). "Mark Penn Is Out to Reinvent the Ad Holding Company". Wall Street Journal. ISSN 0099-9660. Retrieved 2021-07-15.
  9. Busch, Anita (2017-07-14). "Stagwell Group Acquires TV Pilot Testing Assets From Nielsen". Deadline. Retrieved 2021-07-15.
  10. Bond, Paul (2015-11-16). "Nielsen's NRG Acquired by Stagwell Group". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2021-07-15.
  11. O’Reilly, Lara (2018-08-14). "Mark Penn's Stagwell Group Raises $260 Million". Wall Street Journal. ISSN 0099-9660. Retrieved 2021-07-15.
  12. "PR Sector M&A Activity Declines, But Independents Stay Busy". www.provokemedia.com. Retrieved 2021-07-15.
  13. Coffee, Patrick. "Kenneth Cole and Cole Haan are betting on voice-enabled search options. Stagwell Group just snapped up a buzzy startup to try and cash in". Business Insider. Retrieved 2021-07-15.
  14. O’Brien, Kyle (August 4, 2021). "Newly Merged Stagwell Inc. Announces Q2 Earnings". Retrieved 2021-08-24.
  15. Bach, Natasha. "Stagwell acquires SaaS platform Apollo Program". www.prweek.com. Retrieved 2022-07-20.
  16. "Stagwell buys Apollo Program to boost first-party data, SaaS offerings". Digiday. 2022-07-18. Retrieved 2022-07-20.
  17. "Stagwell's Assembly launches retail media division". www.campaignlive.co.uk. Retrieved 2023-08-17.
  18. Siu, Antoinette (2023-10-02). "As $12 billion 2024 political spending cycle nears, Stagwell partners with RealClearPolitics". Digiday. Retrieved 2023-10-12.
  19. Visconti, Ambrogio. "The Stagwell Group's $100 Million Investment In MDC Partners". Retrieved 2021-07-15.
  20. Lepitak, Stephen; Oster, Erik (May 5, 2021). "MDC and Stagwell Group Release Q1 Results, Merger Moves". Retrieved 2021-07-15.
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