Martin Sorrell's ever-expanding S4 Capital has announced a proposed merger with Mexico City-based digital agency Circus Marketing. The move would strengthen S4's presence in Latin America—specifically in Mexico, Brazil, Argentina, Colombia, Costa Rica, Chile and Los Angeles—and expand the company's reach to Spain for the first time.
S4 said the plan is for Circus to merge with its global content practice, built around MediaMonks, which itself merged last year with digital marketing agency Firewood; marketing and customer experience specialist BizTech; and production and creation shop WhiteBalance. (S4 also confirmed in the announcement that it has completed its merger with BizTech.)
According to the company, consideration for the Circus deal will be just over half in cash, with the remainder in S4 stock. Circus projects that it will generate $38 million in revenue and gross profits of $20 million in 2019, representing 21 percent and 25 percent increases, respectively, from 2018, according to the announcement. S4 did not disclose specific terms of the proposed offer for Circus, but said they are in line with its other transactions.
Founded in 2005, Circus employs 350 people across its eight offices in Mexico, Brazil, Argentina, Columbia, Costa Rica, Chile, Los Angeles and Spain. S4 described Circus as a "purely digital agency" that develops content strategies and campaigns for brands like Netflix, Spotify, Google, Facebook and Uber.
S4 welcomed Circus to the company in a video (below). It starts with a message "to the ringleaders" of data-driven and multicultural marketing, saying they will help S4 "break new ground with impactful ideas led by data." The end goal? "To become the greatest show on Earth," according to the video.