Independent content company CreativeDrive has bolstered its global presence with the acquisition of international agency Zebra Worldwide as it strives to shake up the content marketing agency sector.
The company, which is owned Bertram Capital, has a network of over 150 studios in Europe, the US, Latin America, and Asia. The move will combine this with Zebra’s portfolio of video and content production and offices across London, Paris, Cape Town, Kiev and Sydney.
Clients include Walmart, Hilton, Hewlett Packard, Home Depot, Estee Lauder, Kate Spade, Coach, Michael Kors, Asics and Gatorade (pictured). Zebra Worldwide clients include Reckitt Benckiser, Hilton, Ryobi Powertools, Hotels.com.
Zebra Worldwide will retain its identity in the short-term, eventually rebranding as CreativeDrive EMEA in the coming months.
Zebra Worldwide CEO and founder Luke Hammersley will become CreativeDrive EMEA CEO, reporting to CreativeDrive’s Global CEO, Myles Peacock, the former Omnicom chief. Nic Franklin becomes creative director and MD, Cape Town. Sarah Rose has been promoted from finance director to COO, EMEA. Additional leadership roles within the newly merged companies will be announced shortly.
With the recent acquisition of PIA – a US-based motion and sound company – the firm claims to have a global world-class motion and sound offering that brings together brand awareness and commerce.
Peacock said: “Zebra’s ability to deliver world class video and content production through their global teams and powerful localisation platform addresses brands’ insatiable need for content that is customized for specific regions and cultures. The entire Zebra Worldwide team is a natural fit to both our existing culture and our mission to continuously challenge the status quo by consistently producing high-quality content with unparalleled speed and scale.”
Hammersley added: “The value we have created at Zebra over the last 13 years is rooted in the shared efforts, high standards and a premium on client service, as well as a desire to punch above our weight every day.”
“The move we are making into CreativeDrive is further disruption to the status quo in our industry. We are now consultants, content strategists, creatives and producers working as one company, at scale – changing the way marketers make content.
“Working as one unit with CreativeDrive, we’ve already taken several clients off traditional players and it’s proving a powerful proposition. Independent, with global reach, massive studios to work in and 1000+ fellow creative production experts. The brands we have spoken to are already excited as it further encourages them to think differently. We are pitching as content agency of record. It’s new and it’s different.”
Zebra was supported on the deal by accountants Kingston Smith – the same firm which managed the Adam & EveDDB deal – and legal firm Temple Bright.
