BBH acquired by Publicis Groupe

BBH was founded by John Bartle, Nigel Bogle and Sir John Hergarty in 1982 and has become one of the most celebrated creative houses in the world.

Meanwhile, in a separate deal, Publicis has also announced the complete acquisition of NEOGAMA/BBH in Brazil.

Maurice Lévy, Chairman and CEO of Publicis Groupe declared: “My relationship with founders Nigel Bogle, Sir John Hegarty and Alexandre Gama spans a decade – years in which I developed great admiration for the exceptional achievements of these legendary talents and their agencies, the remarkable work they create for their clients, and their magnet to attract talent and clients.

He added: "These transactions will enable the unification of the BBH network. Publicis Groupe has been a good partner to BBH and NEOGAMA/BBH over the past ten years; we’ve managed to understand the rare and special company ethos of BBH, its symbol (the black sheep) and its community of men and women, who are recognized as some of the best professionals in our industry. Faithful to our motto, ‘Viva la Difference,’ we have decided, together with Nigel, John and Alexandre, to engineer an integration that will preserve and protect their specific culture, their working methods, and the characteristics of the agencies through an approach of “autonomy inside” the Groupe. Thus all the ingredients that have enabled the success of BBH and NEOGAMA/BBH will be protected, today, tomorrow and in the long term. BBH’s management will continue to be independent and the network will develop in its own way, in its own style, while benefiting from the support of Publicis Groupe’s resources to accelerate its growth both geographically and via the expansion of its capabilities into more diverse areas. I’m very proud that the founders and teams of BBH and NEOGAMA/BBH have chosen to join us."

Nigel Bogle, Founder of BBH, added, “The decision was very clear. We were looking for an opportunity that would ensure that our agency maintained a high degree of autonomy and could continue to abide by the values characterized by the black sheep. The key point for us was the preservation of our operational independence in managing the BBH brand, which has produced almost uninterrupted growth for thirty years. The new ownership not only ensures our autonomy, but brings us considerable advantages through Publicis Groupe’s resources and global infrastructure.”