Agency network Project Worldwide has acquired Partners & Napier, a Rochester, N.Y.-based integrated agency, the firms said March 17.
Partners & Napier will continue to operate independently, with its brand and leadership team in tact. Sharon Napier will continue in her role as the agency’s president and CEO.
Project Worldwide decided to acquire Partners & Napier, in part, because the agency filled a gap the holding company in its capabilities.
“This kind of traditional ad capability with a digital slant was not something we had in our network,” said Robert Vallee, chairman and CEO of Project Worldwide. He added that Partners & Napier’s specialty in the shopper marketnig sector also made the agency attractive to the network.
Napier said that the holding company’s nontraditional business model was attractive because its agencies do not compete against each other for clients. The agency will also gain the opportunity to work on international business, she said.
“With Project Worldwide, we will have a spot at the strategic table, and that was really important,” she said. “We work with some big brands, and so having global access was also important.”
Partners & Napier’s client list includes Eastman Kodak, Delta Private Jets, UPS and Bausch & Lomb. Other Project Worldwide agencies include experience marketing company George P. Johnson, interactive firm Juxt Interactive and G7 Entertainment Marketing.
Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
