Dentsu Aegis Network acquires Fountainhead for an approximated 400 Cr

by  EVENTFAQS Bureau Industry Watch | October 19, 2015 | News

Dentsu Aegis Fountainhead Brian Tellis

Dentsu Aegis Network, an international advertising firm, has acquired the majority stake in Mumbai-based events and activation agency, Fountainhead Entertainment. The deal was signed by Dentsu Aegis Network (DAN) India on Oct. 17, 2015, after several months of speculation.

The Economic Times approximated the deal to be Rs. 300 Cr. - Rs 400 Cr. The numbers heard prior to this report were Rs. 180 Cr.- Rs. 200 Cr.  

Commenting on the deal, Nick Waters, CEO, DAN Asia Pacific, said; "Fountainhead’s reputation in the event and activation market and their extensive experience in both music and sports marketing, compliments our experiential offering in one of the region’s most exciting markets."

Post acquisition, Fountainhead will continue to be led by Brian Tellis - its co-founder, former chairman and now Chief Executive Officer. The current management team at the agency will also continue, with Tellis reporting to Ashish Bhasin, Chairman and CEO, DAN South Asia. The official communication from DAN also states that the global advertising company’s existing experiential offering, psLIVE, and its 86 employees in India will merge with Fountainhead in 2016.

Bhasin said that the acquisition of Fountainhead is “another big step forward in helping us achieve our mission of being the second largest agency group by end of 2017 in India.”

Fountainhead will retain its brand identity post-merger, while working alongside other specialist units of DAN like Posterscope, Vizeum, Amnet, Dentsu Media, WATConsult, Milestone Brandcom and Dentsu branded agencies - Dentsu Creative Impact, Dentsu Marcom, Dentsu Communications, Taproot Dentsu and Dentsu Webchutney.

Speaking about the merger, Brian Tellis said; “Our vision is to deliver world class experiences to our stakeholders. To set benchmarks in delivery through cutting-edge creativity, innovation, value pricing and practices and processes.  We are thrilled to join Dentsu Aegis Network. The sheer dynamism of the group will open up opportunities for us. Our values are well aligned and the potentially combined entity of Fountainhead and psLIVE will become the most comprehensive experiential offering in India. We are very excited about this opportunity and the growth potential it offers. Fountainhead, a full service experiential agency, will now start to align with an enviable spectrum of brands through the Dentsu Aegis Network.”