Publicis Groupe Buys Brazilian Tribal
Leading advertising and communications player, Publicis Groupe, has
acquired the Sao Paulo-based leading digital agency, Tribal. The
acquired entity will work with the Groupe’s interactive and digital
marketing arm, Digitas.
The
Tribal brand, says the Publicis Groupe, will be kept and the agency
will be aligned with the Digitas global network. The team will continue
to be led by existing management Pierre Mantovani, CEO and Renato Fabri,
chief creative officer. Both will now report to Francois de La
Villardiere, CEO of Digitas Latin America.
Publicis Groupe had acquired Digitas in 2006. In 2007, Digitas was
launched in the UK, in India and Singapore, in China through Publicis
Groupe's acquisition of CCG, as well as in France through the Groupe's
acquisition of Business Interactif.
Since
its launch in 1998, Tribal has been focusing on services including
strategic brand planning, marketing analytics, media planning & buying,
interactive marketing, web & interactive development, as well as
marketing technologies. Its major clients include Microsoft, Philips,
Chrysler, and Whirlpool.
Commenting on the announcement, Laura Lang, chairman & CEO of Digitas,
said, "The acquisition of Tribal is key for strengthening our global
operations and expanding the Digitas network into Latin America.”
Pierre
Mantovani, CEO of Tribal, says, "As we already have an international
dimension, with communication campaigns in 20 different countries,
joining Digitas and becoming part of Publicis Groupe is a great
opportunity for us to operate on a larger scale, while maintaining our
identity and our corporate culture."
Brazil
is one of the most promising advertising markets in the world, says the
Groupe. Quoting ZenithOptimedia forecasts, it says, the Brazilian ad
market grew by 25.1% in 2007, up from 19.4% in 2006. The ad market has
been growing well ahead of the wider economy, which has been growing at
about 4% a year for the last few years. ZO forecasts a 15.4% total ad
expenditure growth for 2008, and double-digit growth for 2009 and 2010.
Publicis Groupe now has nearly 750 employees in Brazil. The Groupe is
present through its brands Publicis, Saatchi & Saatchi, Leo Burnett,
Fallon, and now Digitas.
