Robin Forbes and Tiff Rolfe.
R/GA, the global creative shop, has gone independent in a deal with IPG giving ownership to management and a private equity group, Truelink Capital.
CEO Robin Forbes and chief creative officer Tiffany Rolfe are two of the managers, together with others, who are investing in the company.
The agency, formed 48 years ago, will also have a $US50 million fund to invest in new skillsets and talent, and acquire new capabilities, emerging tools and platforms.
Commercial details of the sale haven’t been revealed.
IPG, which is undergoing a restructure, said the deal allows the global advertising group to further sharpen focus on core strategic offerings.
The company in December sold creative consultancy Huge, once headed by Australian Mat Baxter, to private equity.
Forbes at R/GA said this was a landmark moment.
“This announcement also signals a stark contrast to a wider trend towards consolidation in the agency business.
“Most agencies will struggle to make the pivot in this new age, especially at a time when they’re operating within complex agency structures, saddled with legacy business models.
Tiffany Rolfe, Chair and global chief creative officer at R/GA, said the agency believes in the power of brands to transform.
“The dominant industry narrative around AI has focused largely on efficiency gains in the traditional marketing approach, which is only part of the equation.
“We are leaning into the creative potential to help brands differentiate themselves and exceed rising customer expectations through new kinds of intelligent experiences that haven’t been possible before.
“To us, it’s an opportunity to accelerate our world-class creative work through technology and design.”
R/GA said it is activating an AI-enabled model to better serve clients, "unburdened by the restrictions and overheads of traditional corporate structures".
New remuneration models based on outcomes, agile new team structures, and scaling up its flexible talent model ‘R/GA Associates’, are among the initial changes being implemented.
Luke Myers, co-founder & managing partner at Truelink Capital, said the growth of AI enabled experiences plays an increasingly important role in unlocking value in marketing services.
“R/GA is both designed and perfectly positioned to help seize that new opportunity for clients. Which is why we’re so excited to back R/GA’s global leadership team through our strategic investment.”
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