MDC Partners has acquired a majority stake in healthcare marketing agency Concentric Pharma Advertising, in a deal that will add a healthcare-marketing capability to the New York-based holding company.
“You could see us build a quarter-of-a-billion-dollar-a-year healthcare practice, call it $2 billion in billings, over the next 10 years [via a combination of building out Concentric and acquiring other healthcare-marketing firms],” said Miles Nadal, chairman and CEO of MDC Partners.
MDC Partners also said Sept.16 that it has acquired a majority stake in creative agency Laird & Partners. The New York-based agency works with Gap, Tommy Hilfiger, Donna Kara, Calvin Klein and Vera Wang. Nadal said both acquisitions will result in MDC investing in the agencies’ digital and social capabilities.
Concentric’s senior leadership team will report to MDC’s managing director Gavin Swartzman and chief administrative officer David Dabill. Laird & Partners’ senior leadership team will also report to Dabill.
Nadal declined to confirm reports estimating $20 million to be the price of each acquisition but said the price was “reasonable.” Concentric’s clients include Pfizer, Allergen, Novartis, Bayer HealthCare and Roche.
During MDC’s second-quarter earnings call, Nadal said he expected the company to buy two or three firms in the second half of this year and that the company was close to finalizing an acquisition to expand its international presence. Nadal said on September 16 that MDC still expects to close the latter acquisition during the second half of this year but declined to elaborate.
MDC has majority ownership of agencies such as Crispin Porter & Bogusky, 72andSunny and Attention.
