Continuing on a recent acquisition trail which has seen the multinational advertising and PR company acquiring 'Synergize' (which is now part of 'Saatchi & Saatchi') and 'AML' (now part of 'ZenithOptimedia'), Publicis Groupe has further boosted its digital acumen in South Africa by purchasing Lighthouse Digital. The Lighthouse Digital agency was founded back in 2009, and has spent the last 5 years building itself into one of the largest digital media agencies in Africa. A lofty claim perhaps, but with campaigns running across 14 countries in sub-Saharan Africa for clients as prestigious and diverse as HTC, Microsoft and General Motors, it's certainly not a claim without merit.
Lighthouse will be integrated within the Starcom MediaVest Group (SMG) and rebranded as 'SMG Lighthouse'. Lighthouse CEO and founder Aaron van Schaik will remain at the head of the table as the CEO of SMG in South Africa. The role of Digital Operation Director however, will fall to van Schaik's colleague and Lighthouse's co-founder, Steven Waidelich. They will serve under Iain Jacob, the president of SMG's dynamic markets. Jacob has said he believe that “With the acquisition of Lighthouse Digital, SMG in South Africa will become a stronger, wholly integrated agency with digital at its core.” He also welcomed his new signings to the team, saying that he was “Looking forward to working with Aaron closely.”
“With the acquisition of Lighthouse, SMG in South Africa will become a stronger agency”
Of his new home, van Schaik says that it's a “Pleasure to be joining the SMG family,” as he feels they have a “Solid reputation in Africa and around the world for providing top notch media services to their clients.” He feels that joining with SMG under the Publicis Groupe banner, will give the brand a “Global scale, and a more powerful face to the market.” He believes this increased scale will enable the company to “Constantly improve, and give client the tools and solutions they won't get anywhere else.” These tools will no doubt include the advanced, social analytical tools that Lighthouse has been a renowned leader in utilising. They were also the first agency in the continent to provide their clients with a proprietary, real-time reporting dashboard.
It's this forward-thinking approach that attracted Jacob to the firm. He says himself that South Africa is a growth market and a “Core region”, and that the acquisition of Lighthouse will help to keep SMG “Far ahead of the market and posed to offer clients innovative, future-forward work” far ahead of their competitors.
The acquisition should solidify the company's status as the leading digital agency in the region
The acquisition effective doubles the size of SMG in South Africa, which will now boast more than 80 employees, with the 30 digital media experts from Lighthouse across its offices in both Cape Town and Johannesburg now joining the SMG family. In becoming part of SMG South Africa, Lighthouse will be joining other established agencies like 'LiquidThread' and 'Starcom Johannesburg', agencies which have (between them) recently added esteemed clients such as S-Mobile, Etisalat and Mondelez. The acquisition should solidify the company's status as the leading digital agency in the region.
Official Publicis Groupe Website
Official Lighthouse Digital Website
Benjamin Hiorns is a copywriter from the UK who is more than happy to share his (often incendiary) opinions with anyone who will listen.
