Serviceplan Group acquires a 30 percent share of Pereira O’Dell.

Munich / New York / San Francisco, 6^th October 2020 — Today, Serviceplan Group and bi-coastal creative agency Pereira O’Dell have announced that they are joining forces in a partnership that will strengthen Serviceplan Group’s US presence and expand Pereira O’Dell’s global reach. 

With Serviceplan Group´s worldwide network spanning 35 countries and Pereira O’Dell’s US operations rooted in New York and San Francisco, the new alliance strengthens the international reach of both agencies. This partnership will supercharge creative capabilities for Serviceplan and facilitate the global integration of key clients across the network, while giving Pereira O'Dell an international offering for clients in the US.

“For Serviceplan Group, this stake is a strategic step towards increasing our existing global footprint,” said Florian Haller, CEO Serviceplan Group. “Following our long-term international strategy, we believe in our goal to offer our integrated agency concept with creative & content, media & data and experience & technology in all relevant international markets. Our partnership with Pereira O‘Dell is the next logical step forward.” 

"We are thrilled about our new partnership with the Serviceplan Group,” said Andrew O’Dell, CEO, Pereira O’Dell. “From our very first meeting, we knew our shared vision of creative excellence, independent spirit and creating a unique global offering, was not only exactly what we wanted for Pereira O'Dell as an agency, but for our clients too. We are looking forward to navigating this next chapter, together.”

Each agency will remain independent and continue to go-to-market under their respective brands, but will now be able to collaborate seamlessly on campaigns as needed. This is the initial step in Serviceplan’s projected growth trajectory and US investment strategy.  

Markus Noder, Member of the Executive Board of Serviceplan Group adds, “This step is an enabler for the lasting success of our House of Communication concept in the US. I am looking forward to pushing our common vision together with our new partners, Pereira O‘Dell.” 

German engineering meets American daring

The partnership comes in a year which has been unsettling for the world with the Covid-19 pandemic. Serviceplan Group rode the wave and despite the challenges faced by the Coronavirus lockdown, maintained market stability reporting global agency fees of 448 million EURO for the financial year ending 30 June 2020. Thanks to Serviceplan Group’s international orientation, integrated mindset, focus on digitalization and partner-managed structure, the performance confirms its status as Europe’s leading owner-managed agency group. The initial discussions surrounding this new partnership were developed during an October 2019 meeting  when both parties identified many similarities in their free-spirited culture and approach and a desire for continued growth in their respective markets. This partnership solidifies Serviceplans purchase of shares from Omnicom/Grupo ABC. Ciesco, the London based Specialist M&A firm acted as the exclusive advisor for Serviceplan, led by their CEO Chris Sahota.

“This strategic partnership has been in the works for quite some time, and is an important moment for the group as we expand our offering in the US,” said Stefan Schuette, CEO Serviceplan US House of Communication. “Our agencies are well aligned in terms of structure, culture and agency philosophy, which made the decision even easier. We are thrilled to be able to offer clients even more communications services in an integrated format.”

ABOUT SERVICEPLAN GROUP 

The Serviceplan Group is Europe’s largest independent, partner-managed agency group. Founded 50 years ago as an advertising agency, Serviceplan quickly developed the concept of the “House of Communication” – to date, Germany’s only fully integrated agency model that combines all modern communication disciplines under one roof, whether brand strategists, creative, media, digital or technology experts, market researchers, PR consultants or sales professionals. With 24 of its own locations as well as further partnerships, the Serviceplan Group is represented in a total of 35 countries worldwide and in all important economies. In addition to the three largest agency brands, Serviceplan, Mediaplus and Plan.Net, the Group includes the market research institute Facit, the realization agency Solutions, and the strategic consultancy agency Serviceplan Consulting.

The US House of Communication, based in New York, launched in 2018 with a staff of currently 65 employees and is helmed by Stefan Schuette, a veteran of the Serviceplan Group. Joining him is MODCo/Mediaplus, a full-service, NY-based media planning and buying agency, led by its CEO Erik Dochtermann.

Serviceplan recently expanded in Vienna with the merger of Serviceplan Group Austria and Wien Nord, and in Amsterdam through the merger with MEDIAXPLAIN* to establish a new House of Communication in Amsterdam. 

AWARDS 

Serviceplan ranked 5th in the top 10 Cannes Lions Independent of the Decade in June 2020. Serviceplan Group has also enjoyed success in leading rankings of various communication disciplines: creativity (1st place in the Redbox ranking), efficiency (most frequently awarded agency at Effie Germany), digital (1st place in the BVDW creative ranking), design ("Design Agency of the Year" in the PAGE ranking), media ("Media Agency of the Year" at the German Media Award), healthcare (1st place in the Healthcare Marketing creative ranking) and PR (1st place in the PR creative ranking of PR Journal).

ABOUT PEREIRA O’DELL 

Founded in 2008 by Andrew O’Dell and PJ Pereira, PereiraO'Dell, is a full-service bi-coastal agency with offices in San Francisco and New York. Clients include Adobe, Fifth Third Bank, Rakuten, MINI, Stella Artois, Corona, Intel, The Cheesecake Factory, and several brands under the General Mills umbrella. Pereira O'Dell has amassed over 100 respected advertising and entertainment awards including numerous Cannes Lions, Clio’s, D&AD Pencils, Effie’s and an Emmy win. For more information, please visit: www.pereiraodell.com.