News
LDC-backed Fishawack expands US footprint with 2e Creative acquisition
2 Aug 2019
LDC-backed Fishawack, a leading independent healthcare communications specialist, has announced the acquisition of US-based healthcare communications agency, 2e Creative, for an undisclosed sum.
The deal, which follows the acquisitions of creative consultancy Blue Latitude, Healthcircle Advertising Limited and healthcare marketing agency Dudnyk, marks the fourth acquisition for Fishawack over the past 12 months. The firm has made a total of five acquisitions with the support of mid-market private equity investor LDC since LDC backed the £38million buyout of the business in 2017 with a commitment to support its international buy-and-build strategy.
The acquisitions take Fishawack’s global headcount to more than 750, placing it among the largest independent healthcare agencies globally.
2e Creative is a launch and growth agency featuring Fortune 50 clients across pharma, medical device and research biotech. The agency’s core competencies include branding, marketing strategy, digital marketing, sales training and meeting/event production.
Our goal is to increase the range of healthcare communications services that we can offer to commercial and medical affairs teams internationally, and with the financial and strategic support of the team at LDC we have been able to do just that. Our acquisition of 2e marks an important milestone in our growth strategy and we are now delivering integrated creative and medical communications solutions on a truly global scale.”
Jonathan Bell, head of LDC in the North West, added: “When we first partnered with the team at Fishawack in 2017 they had an ambition to expand their overseas footprint and a clear plan of how to get there. With a focus on partnering with businesses that not only enable them to deliver their market-leading services in new geographies, but whose values strongly align with their own, the team has been able to drive strong and sustainable growth. It has been a pleasure to support Oliver and the team on their journey so far and we’re aligned in supporting their vision for continued expansion worldwide.”
The deal is a further example of LDC’s support of buy-and-build growth strategies, which saw the firm back 25 UK and overseas acquisitions, with a combined enterprise value of £125million, across its portfolio in 2018.
KPMG and Addleshaw Goddard advised Fishawack on its acquisition of 2e. 2e’s advisors included Results International, Stoll Keenon Ogden PLLC and Clifton Larson Allen.