Interpublic companies merge, healthcare agencies intact
October 15, 2009 – 3:52 pm by Gina MonariInterpublic Group has aligned its Deutsch agency with Lowe Worldwide under the name Deutsch Inc., a Lowe & Partners Co. Lowe Roche and Lowe Healthcare will continue to operate without any change to their existing leadership teams and branding. Deutsch LA will also be unaffected, continuing to run as an integrated agency, reporting to Deutsch Inc.
An Interpublic spokesperson told Med Ad News that the healthcare practice of Lowe has been incredibly strong, and as a result, the branding will stay the same and management at the agencies — ICC, Lowe Healthcare, and Lowe Roche in Toronto — will stay the same. The difference now is that there is a new North American management unit called Deutsch Inc. a Lowe & Partners Co. Lowe Healthcare now reports into Linda Sawyer. Ms. Sawyer becomes North American CEO of Deutsch Inc., a Lowe & Partners Co. Deutsch NY will absorb the Lowe New York operations.
The spokesperson added that mergers are difficult to make successful but that this is an example where the agencies were complementary and that this was more of a smart business decision for shared clients to help the two merged organizations grow in areas where they needed to grow.
Deutsch was at a point where it was looking to grow and have international presence so they could work with clients that are serviced now in the United States and help service them in other markets, which they did not have a delivery mechanism to do. Lowe, meanwhile, has many offices in many world markets, such as Scandinavia, India, China, Russia, and Brazil. There was not much of a presence in New York, so the Deutsch alignment provides a premier U.S. company as the delivery mechanism in the U.S. market.
Deutsch is now the North American hub of the Lowe & Partners global network, assuming management oversight of Lowe operations in North America, including Lowe New York, Lowe Roche Toronto, and Lowe Healthcare, under the leadership of Ms. Sawyer.
“The Lowe turnaround has been an important part of the overall progress made at IPG in recent years,” says Michael I. Roth, chairman and CEO, Interpublic (interpublic.com). “The agency had made great strides in reclaiming its place as a global creative powerhouse, it’s won major assignments from existing and new multinational clients and, as a result, has reversed revenue declines and significantly improved profitability. We’ve also brought on great talent and added to the agency’s leadership with the recent arrival of CEO Michael Wall.”
According to managers at Interpublic, Deutsch is an agency with a great brand and strong management team, as well as a powerful integrated model. The respective strengths and needs of each company are complementary, which is what led Interpublic to consider this alignment. By giving Deutsch the lead role in North America and access to a strong global network, while at the same time bolstering Lowe’s standing in the vital U.S. market, Interpublic managers believe that a more powerful offering will be created to accelerate growth.
“Tony Wright and I have worked closely together to develop this innovative new model, which leverages Deutsch’s fierce independence and strong culture, while also providing us with access to global tentacles through the new Lowe network, which is a stalwart global federation of creative, independent and diverse agencies around the world,” Ms. Sawyer says. “This will allow us to take our business-focused approach to new levels and simultaneously enhance Lowe’s U.S. offering.”
Ms. Sawyer also announced that Val DiFebo is named CEO of the combined Deutsch and Lowe operations in New York. Ms. DiFebo was president, Deutsch NY.
“Val’s been a key part of our success since 1992 and there is no one better to lead a smooth transition or to maximize the opportunities of the combined entity,” Ms. Sawyer says. “I know she joins me in welcoming Lowe NY employees and clients to our combined offices at Deutsch NY.”
Eric Hirshberg and Mike Sheldon are being named co-CEOs of Deutsch LA. Donny Deutsch remains chairman of Deutsch Inc., a Lowe & Partners Co.
“Deutsch is an agency with strong brand recognition, a highly effective integrated model and a track history of long-term success,” says Tony Wright, chairman, Lowe Worldwide. “We are very excited to formalize the collaborative relationship that our agencies have enjoyed for the past few years. The Lowe & Partners network that we are building is predicated on strong local agencies servings as hubs, from which we steward the marketing and communications needs of blue chip clients. Deutsch will now serve as one of those hubs, which will result in significant benefits for our existing clients and will also strengthen our ability to attract new global clients.”
Mr. Wright adds that Lowe NY Chairman and Chief Creative Officer Mark Wnek will not join Deutsch Inc., but instead move to a Lowe Worldwide role, focused on certain key multinational clients, while Lowe NY President Sal Taibi will become partner, general manager of the new Deutsch NY.
Tags: agency news, Interpublic, Lowe Healthcare, mergers
