Havas Health & You Partners with Republica Havas to Create Republica Havas Health

Today, the world's largest health and wellness network, Havas Health & You, has announced a joint venture with industry leader Republica Havas; the creation of a new agency for the fostering of health equity for multicultural patients, called 'Republica Havas Health'. The new division is helmed by co-founder, chairman and CEO Jorge A. Plasencia, who plans to leverage the scale of the Havas Health & You (HH&Y) network to reach consumers and brands across the States, followed by a plan to expand globally. The agency has four priorities: diversity in clinical research, culturally relevant health and wellness marketing, multicultural competence in healthcare, and concrete action to address health inequities.

Despite nearly half of the US identifying as multicultural - and the world's population being increasingly more diverse – systemic inequities in the health and wellness of diverse audiences are still shockingly prevalent. In a press release earlier today, HH&Y explained that Republica Havas Health will address these issues, "to help promote deep cultural fluency in health and wellness communications for Hispanic, African American, Asian American and LGBTQIA+ patients and consumers."

Since its inception in 2006, Republica Havas has had a reliable history of driving the cultural relevancy of brands across several categories, including Walmart, Toyota and Google. The agency's health and wellness experience also spans over a decade and includes clients such as Pfizer, Boehringer Ingelheim, Merck, and Amgen – from which they bring specialised knowledge into this new partnership with HH&Y.

In today's announcement from HH&Y, global CEO Donna Murphy says, "Our belief is that effective marketing and communications takes an inclusive approach from the onset, and that cultural relevancy is central to audience engagement, particularly in health. Republica Havas has a strong legacy of deep connection to the communities they serve, and has long acted as a liaison between brands and consumers to build trust and create solutions that promote innovation and equity. Formalising a health-focused division of this booming business marks an incredible step, and marks an important moment in our shared mission of Human Purpose as we act in the service of elevating health and wellness outcomes for all." 

Republica Havas is minority-certified with exclusive Corporate Plus designation by the National Minority Supplier Development Council (NMSDC), and its new division will bring together creative, media, PR, and social impact under one roof to build relationships and plan multifaceted, culture-first initiatives for clients. 

Continuing to lay out the agency's aims in the press release, co-founder, chairman and CEO of Republica Havas, Jorge A. Plasencia, says: "Since Republica's start in 2006, we have been passionate about connecting brands with consumers through cultural understanding and relevance. Partnering with Havas Health & You to broaden the scope of our work through Republica Havas Health marks an exciting next chapter for us and harnesses the critical importance of in-culture health and wellness communications."