Draftfcb Worldwide Acquires Inferno in London

Draftfcb Worldwide CEO Carter Murray today announced the acquisition of Inferno, the London-based independent advertising agency. The combination of Draftfcb and Inferno will provide creative solutions that are perfectly suited to the fast-paced communications landscape across all media.

 
Inferno – founded in 2000 – is lauded as a premier creative agency with a bullish trajectory based on its creative strength and impressive new business track record, earning the reputation of a “giant slayer” in the market. Just this year, the agency landed a coveted spot on the UK government’s prestigious roster of only 10 Tier 1 agencies. It’s also considered an expert on tech brands, counting companies including BSkyB, Skype, Lookout and Nokia as clients.

 
“The move is a win-win for all involved,” said Murray. “Inferno and Draftfcb’s combined capabilities and instant critical mass will enable the agency to better service global clients and grow more quickly organically.  With such deep bench strength, increased thought leadership and an unwavering commitment to creativity, we are confident of and excited about our future in the UK.”
           

The shops have courted for some time and have tremendous synergies and a shared media-agnostic vision. Frazer Gibney, founding partner and CEO of Inferno – a top ranking agency in Campaign’s latest School Report – will become the CEO of Inferno Draftfcb, reporting to Murray. Gibney will integrate executives from Inferno and Draftfcb into his leadership team. The new management structure is to be announced early next year.
 

“The merger with Draftfcb’s UK office creates an agency with enhanced capabilities globally and locally, it’s a natural next step for an agency with global ambitions to join a premier league network,” said Gibney. “By joining forces with Draftfcb we’ll now gain bricks-and-mortar presence alongside our “Captology” network – a global knowledge network of 900 industry experts - that will now enable the agency to deploy globally.”
 

The new entity, initially called Inferno Draftfcb, will have joint capabilities spanning on and offline advertising, CRM, retail, web design and build, content creation, application development, mobile and social media that will enable it to deliver innovative advertising solutions for clients.
 
Murray recognized the contributions of Kate Howe, currently President UK and Europe, who has resigned from the agency and will leave by December 31. “We are thankful for Kate’s outstanding performance over the past 4 years including her roles leading the global Beiersdorf pitch, integrating the acquisition of digital agency Blue Barracuda and creating the opportunity for us to acquire Inferno,” he said. “We are very sorry to see her go and wish her every success in the future.”