Who is buying marketing agencies?
21 named consolidator platforms are actively acquiring US marketing agency businesses; 12 of them are private-equity-backed. The most recent named acquisition tracked on this page closed in September 2026.
Why marketing agencies are consolidating
- •The US had 114,014 advertising agency businesses in 2026, up 4.4% from 2025, in an industry with low market share concentration, according to IBISWorld.
- •Advertising and marketing M&A rose to 636 deals worldwide in 2025, up 11.6% from 570 in 2024 and still below the 825 deals of 2022, according to CG Results data reported by Campaign US.
- •In 2025, 33.2% of those deals (211 of 636) were made by private equity or PE-backed buyers, up from 28.2% the year before, according to CG Results data reported by Campaign US.
- •Marketing services M&A reached 266 announced transactions in the first half of 2025, 8% above the first half of 2024, according to Houlihan Lokey's Q2 2025 Marketing Services Market Update using S&P Capital IQ data.
- •Private equity accounts for more than a third of acquisitions of marketing, tech and consultancy businesses, with more than 50 PE firms actively acquiring, according to SI Global's second annual Private Equity Insights Report as reported by The Drum in May 2025.
- •More than half of independent agency owners say they are interested in selling, a multiyear high, according to Evros Group's 2026 M&A Sentiment Survey published by ADWEEK on July 23, 2026.
- •Havas and Publicis Groupe made the most acquisitions of any marketing communications group in 2025, according to Statista.
The platforms consolidating marketing agencies
The named groups acquiring US marketing agency businesses, with their current owner and a source for each. Most grow through individual partnerships that are not separately disclosed; where a platform publishes named deals, recent ones are listed.
| Acquirer | Owner / backer | Type | Headquarters | Latest named deal |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Omnicom | Public (NYSE: OMC) | Strategic / public | New York, NY | Nov 2025 |
| Publicis Groupe | Public (Euronext Paris, CAC 40) | Strategic / public | Paris, France | Apr 2026 |
| Accenture Song (Accenture) | Public (NYSE: ACN) | Strategic / public | Dublin, Ireland | Jul 2026 |
| Havas | Public (Euronext Amsterdam) | Strategic / public | Puteaux, France | Jun 2026 |
| Stagwell | Public (NASDAQ: STGW) | Strategic / public | New York, NY | May 2025 |
| Real Chemistry | New Mountain Capital (single-asset continuation vehicle) | Private equity | New York, NY | Jul 2026 |
| Hawke Media | Founder Erik Huberman (founder-led, bootstrapped; no private equity backing) | Strategic / family-owned | Santa Monica, CA | Mar 2025 |
| Brainlabs | Falfurrias Capital Partners | Private equity | London, UK | Jul 2025 |
| Wpromote | ZMC | Private equity | El Segundo, CA | Nov 2025 |
| Power Digital | Court Square Capital Partners | Private equity | San Diego, CA | Sep 2026 |
| Meet The People | Innovatus Capital Partners | Private equity | New York, NY | Jul 2026 |
| Tombras | Tombras family (family-owned; no outside investment) | Strategic / family-owned | Knoxville, TN | Jan 2026 |
| Mod Op | Alterna Equity Partners | Private equity | Miami, FL | Oct 2025 |
| Yes& | Independent, founder-led (Robert W. Sprague, founder and CEO) | Strategic / family-owned | Alexandria, VA | Jun 2026 |
| OuterBox | WILsquare Capital | Private equity | Copley, OH | Jan 2026 |
| Level | Dubin Clark | Private equity | Pittsburgh, PA | Oct 2025 |
| Gravity Global | Elysian Capital (Fund III) | Private equity | London, UK | Aug 2025 |
| Walker Sands | Mountaingate Capital (majority) | Private equity | Chicago, IL | Jun 2026 |
| Drake Cooper | Employees (100% employee-owned) | Employee-owned (ESOP) | Boise, ID | Jul 2026 |
| Interluxe Group | Mountaingate Capital | Private equity | New York, NY | Jun 2026 |
| OneMagnify | Crestview Partners | Private equity | Detroit, MI | Feb 2026 |
Omnicom
Strategic / public- Owner
- Public (NYSE: OMC)
- Headquarters
- New York, NY
- Scale
- Over 5,000 clients in more than 70 countries (2024 figure, before the Interpublic deal)
Closed its acquisition of Interpublic on November 26, 2025, so the legacy IPG agencies now sit inside Omnicom. The client and country counts come from a 2024 release and predate the merger.
Publicis Groupe
Strategic / public- Owner
- Public (Euronext Paris, CAC 40)
- Headquarters
- Paris, France
- Scale
- Around 114,000 professionals in over 100 countries
Publicis agreed to buy 160over90 from WME Group on April 2, 2026, subject to regulatory approvals. This run did not confirm that the deal has closed. Statista names Havas and Publicis as the most acquisitive marketing-communications groups of 2025.
Accenture Song (Accenture)
Strategic / public- Owner
- Public (NYSE: ACN)
- Headquarters
- Dublin, Ireland
- Scale
- Approximately 786,000 people serving approximately 9,000 clients
Accenture buys agencies into Accenture Song, its marketing and creative division. Whalar has staff in the US, UK, Ireland, Germany and Spain, so it is not counted as a US deal.
Havas
Strategic / public- Owner
- Public (Euronext Amsterdam)
- Headquarters
- Puteaux, France
- Scale
- Nearly 23,000 people in over 100 countries
Listed on Euronext Amsterdam since December 16, 2024. It usually buys a majority stake rather than 100%, as it did with Channel Bakers and Archrival. Eyesight produces luxury fashion shows and has offices in New York, Los Angeles and Paris, so it is not counted as a US deal.
Stagwell
Strategic / public- Owner
- Public (NASDAQ: STGW)
- Headquarters
- New York, NY
- Scale
- Specialists in 45+ countries
Stagwell says it made 11 acquisitions in 2024, but only two of them were US targets (BERA and Team Epiphany). The others included LEADERS (Israel), PROS (Brazil) and What's Next Partners (France). Its July 2026 agreement for QStrauss is for a firm in Colombia.
Real Chemistry
Private equity- Owner
- New Mountain Capital (single-asset continuation vehicle)
- Headquarters
- New York, NY
- Scale
- About 2,000 employees (PitchBook, 2026); main hubs include Boston, Chicago, New York, San Francisco, London and Singapore
Focuses on healthcare and life-sciences marketing. In April 2025 New Mountain moved Real Chemistry into a $3.1 billion continuation vehicle that it manages, so the company was not sold to a new sponsor. Sources disagree on headquarters: the company's 2026 releases are datelined New York, but New Mountain's portfolio page says San Francisco.
Hawke Media
Strategic / family-owned- Owner
- Founder Erik Huberman (founder-led, bootstrapped; no private equity backing)
- Headquarters
- Santa Monica, CA
- Scale
- 23 agencies acquired in 10 years
According to the podcast, Hawke pays no cash up front, focuses on the lower and middle market, and absorbs deals that go badly without private equity backing. The founder's ownership stake is not published.
Brainlabs
Private equity- Owner
- Falfurrias Capital Partners
- Headquarters
- London, UK
- Scale
- Over 1,000 team members
A UK-headquartered agency buying in the US. Falfurrias still lists Brainlabs in its portfolio, but calls the 2023 deal a growth investment and does not state the size of its stake.
Wpromote
Private equity- Owner
- ZMC
- Headquarters
- El Segundo, CA
- Scale
- Manages more than $3 billion in client media spend
ZMC invested in October 2022, according to Wpromote's release of October 26, 2022. Sidley's November 2025 note confirms ZMC is still the backer. The combined agency is called Wpromote x Giant Spoon.
Power Digital
Private equity- Owner
- Court Square Capital Partners
- Headquarters
- San Diego, CA
- Scale
- About 900 employees (Feb 2026)
Court Square backed Power Digital in March 2022, buying out Periscope Equity, and its portfolio page lists the investment as current. The September 2026 releases do not give locations for pirawna (an Amazon agency) or uptickk (a TikTok Shop agency).
Meet The People
Private equity- Owner
- Innovatus Capital Partners
- Headquarters
- New York, NY
- Scale
- 12 brands and 850+ employees across North America
Founded in 2021 and described as backed by Innovatus Capital Partners, LLC. The year Innovatus first invested is not stated. Meet The People markets itself as an alternative to the big holding companies.
Tombras
Strategic / family-owned- Owner
- Tombras family (family-owned; no outside investment)
- Headquarters
- Knoxville, TN
- Scale
- Nearly 600 employees worldwide
The Opinionated release calls Tombras a family-owned company, founded in 1946, that is scaling without outside investment.
Mod Op
Private equity- Owner
- Alterna Equity Partners
- Headquarters
- Miami, FL
- Scale
- Based in Miami, with offices in 11 other cities including New York, Los Angeles, Dallas and Toronto (Dec 2024)
Alterna Equity Partners completed its investment in February 2022 (PR Newswire, Feb 15, 2022). The October 2025 release says Alterna still backs Mod Op.
Yes&
Strategic / family-owned- Owner
- Independent, founder-led (Robert W. Sprague, founder and CEO)
- Headquarters
- Alexandria, VA
- Scale
- Remote staff in 32 states and three countries (Jun 2025)
Calls itself independent and appears on the Inc. 5000 list of privately held companies. No outside investor was found, but the ownership split is not published. Its releases variously say it is based in Alexandria, VA or in Washington, D.C.
OuterBox
Private equity- Owner
- WILsquare Capital
- Headquarters
- Copley, OH
- Scale
- Over 1,200 clients nationwide
WILsquare says GRO was the fifth acquisition in its digital marketing platform, after OuterBox (2022), Trinity Insight (2023), TopSpot (2024) and ADM (2025).
Level
Private equity- Owner
- Dubin Clark
- Headquarters
- Pittsburgh, PA
- Scale
- About 250 people combined after the BAM Strategy deal (Oct 2025)
BAM Strategy is Canadian, so it is not counted as a US deal.
Gravity Global
Private equity- Owner
- Elysian Capital (Fund III)
- Headquarters
- London, UK
- Scale
- Not disclosed
A UK-based B2B marketing consultancy, owned by Elysian Capital since a September 2021 management buyout, that is buying US agencies.
Walker Sands
Private equity- Owner
- Mountaingate Capital (majority)
- Headquarters
- Chicago, IL
- Scale
- More than 250 employees including RevPartners (Jun 2026); offices in Chicago, Seattle and Boston
Mountaingate bought Walker Sands from Stone-Goff Partners in October 2025, as the second platform investment in its Fund III. Mountaingate also backs Interluxe Group.
Drake Cooper
Employee-owned (ESOP)- Owner
- Employees (100% employee-owned)
- Headquarters
- Boise, ID
- Scale
- Nearly 100 full-time employees; offices in Boise and Los Angeles
A small acquirer, included as the employee-owned example. The source says it is 100% employee-owned but does not say whether ownership is held through an ESOP.
Interluxe Group
Private equity- Owner
- Mountaingate Capital
- Headquarters
- New York, NY
- Scale
- More than 200 team members across North America and Europe (Jun 2026)
A luxury-focused marketing platform that Mountaingate formed in February 2025 by combining North & Warren with Interluxe Group. The adMixt release calls Mountaingate's role a 2025 growth investment and does not state its stake. The headquarters comes from the release's New York dateline. adMixt's location is not stated.
OneMagnify
Private equity- Owner
- Crestview Partners
- Headquarters
- Detroit, MI
- Scale
- More than 700 marketing, creative, technology, analytics and AI experts (Feb 2025)
An August 2026 release still describes OneMagnify as backed by Crestview. The year Crestview invested and the size of its stake were not found. Guidance's location comes only from the release dateline, and Optimal's location is not stated, so neither is a deal row.
Selling in your state?
What marketing agency businesses sell for, who is buying, and how many there are, state by state.
Frequently asked
Who are the biggest buyers of marketing agencies?
The public holding companies. Omnicom completed its acquisition of Interpublic on November 26, 2025. Publicis bought Influential (2024), then Dysrupt and Captiv8 (2025), and agreed to buy 160over90 in April 2026. Havas bought majority stakes in Channel Bakers (February 2025) and Archrival (June 2026). Statista names Havas and Publicis as the most acquisitive marketing-communications groups of 2025. Accenture Song bought Superdigital (August 2025), and Stagwell bought JetFuel (May 2025).
Is private equity buying marketing agencies?
Yes. CG Results data reported by Campaign US shows that 33.2% of 2025 ad and marketing deals (211 of 636) were made by private equity or PE-backed buyers. SI Global's 2025 report, covered by The Drum, counted more than 50 PE firms active in the space. Recent examples: Mountaingate Capital bought a majority of Chicago-based Walker Sands in October 2025, AEA Elevate invested in Boston's 829 Studios in January 2026 by buying CIVC Partners' position, and Martis Capital took a majority stake in Conshohocken, PA-based Deerfield Group in June 2026.
Do buyers acquire small agencies, or only large ones?
Small agencies sell regularly. Tombras bought New York's The Burns Group, a 10-person shop, in October 2024, and Portland's Opinionated, a 40-person team, in January 2026. Accenture bought Superdigital, which had over 40 employees, in August 2025. Hawke Media's founder says he has bought 23 agencies in 10 years, focusing on the lower and middle market and paying no cash up front.
Is agency M&A activity going up or down?
It is rising again after a slump. CG Results counted 636 advertising and marketing deals worldwide in 2025, up 11.6% from 570 in 2024, after a fall from 825 in 2022 (reported by Campaign US). Houlihan Lokey counted 266 marketing services transactions in the first half of 2025, 8% more than in the first half of 2024.
How many agency owners are looking to sell?
More than half of the independent agency owners in Evros Group's 2026 M&A Sentiment Survey, published by ADWEEK on July 23, 2026, said they are interested in selling. ADWEEK calls that a multiyear high.
Can an agency be sold to its employees instead of an outside buyer?
Yes. Kuno Creative, a digital marketing agency in Lorain, Ohio founded in 2000, transferred 100% of its ownership to its employees through an ESOP in August 2021. Nashville's 5by5 became 100% employee-owned in February 2025 when it was acquired by 3LS Inc., an employee-owned company. Boise's Drake Cooper, which is 100% employee-owned, bought Orange County agency Gigasavvy in July 2026.
Methodology & sources
Compiled in October 2026 from press releases by acquirers and PE sponsors, sponsor portfolio pages, company acquisition pages and trade press (MediaPost, Adweek, LA Business Journal, San Diego Business Journal, PR Newswire, GlobeNewswire). Sources were found with Parallel search and read in full where the page could be fetched. Each platform's owner was checked for a 2025-2026 sale, recapitalization or exit, and sponsor portfolio pages were used where they exist (Court Square, New Mountain, Elysian, Bregal Sagemount, Falfurrias). A deal's location is recorded only when a source states it; deals with no stated location, or with a target outside the US, are left off the deal list but may still appear in a platform's acquisition list. The adversarial check removed one platform whose owner could not be confirmed and added two that the draft missed.
Market sources
- IBISWorld: Advertising Agencies in the US, Number of Businesses (2026) ↗
- Campaign US: Global M&A market finds footing in 2025 (CG Results data, Mar 2026) ↗
- Houlihan Lokey: Marketing Services Market Update Q2 2025 ↗
- The Drum: Private equity investment in marketing businesses up 21% (SI Global Private Equity Insights Report, May 2025) ↗
- ADWEEK / Evros Group: 2026 M&A Sentiment Survey (Jul 23, 2026) ↗
- Statista: Acquisitions by selected marketing communications agencies, 2025 ↗
Last updated October 6, 2026. Platform ownership last verified October 6, 2026. Ownership in this sector changes frequently; figures reflect the most recent public sources available and are not investment, legal, or tax advice.
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