Newcastle's Karol Marketing has acquired Fusion PR Creative in an undisclosed deal that will see both agencies continue to operate under their existing names.
The move means Fusion PR Creative's John McCabe - who was appointed chief executive of the North East England Chamber of Commerce last year - will step down from the agency while Karol founder and managing director Stefan Lepkowski becomes group managing director.
Mr Lepkowski said: “This is a strategic and purposeful move designed to reinforce and strengthen our long-standing commitment to the region, providing the very highest level of strategic communications, public affairs, marketing and PR expertise to the North East’s business community.
Read more: Ringtons brews up 10% turnover rise driven by tea and biscuits boom
"We’re proud to work with and alongside the businesses, charities and public sector organisations that make up this thriving and vibrant part of the world.
“Fusion is the absolute perfect fit for Karol, bringing a highly specialist and exemplar skills set to our offering for clients, especially B2B companies and public sector organisations, who may be operating on a very local level or UK-wide and beyond.”
Fusion's team will continue in their roles and Karol says it will invest in new recruits with combined fees for the year expected to be into seven figures.
Mr McCabe said: “I’m very pleased to have concluded the sale of Fusion to Karol Marketing. It’s almost nine years to the day since I launched Fusion and in that time the business has grown way beyond my initial expectations. We’ve created good jobs for good, talented people, won awards for our work, and had the pleasure of working with fantastic clients. It’s good to know I’m leaving the business in very strong shape, and in very good hands, with a bright, exciting future ahead.
“I have great admiration for Stefan and Karol Marketing. It’s a business which has stood the test of time but as Stefan has shown with the purchase of Fusion and the other appointments he has made to his team, it continues to innovate and stay at the top. I wish Stefan and his new team all the very best for the future and I’m confident great things lie in store for this outstanding business.”
The acquisition follows the appointments of former Bond Dickinson vice chairman John Marshall as non-executive director and former NGI marketing and communications director Kathie Wilcox, a former client of Karol, as an associate director. Both were said to have played key roles in securing the deal.
Mr Lepkowski added: “By working as we do in the way that we do, both companies have achieved huge results for clients, whether it be growing their business and market share, lobbying Government, delivering crisis comms, developing strategy or getting them talked about and seen positively by their target customers.
"Much of our work is done behind the scenes, but the results speak for themselves, and we have become integral to many organisations by adding considerable value. By investing in our team, we anticipate that these results will get even better, and both businesses will continue to thrive.
“I want the Karol Marketing Group to play an integral role in delivering marketing and communications services to North East based business and organisations and, to that end, I will be embarking on a recruitment drive aimed at attracting the very best talent, to support what I already firmly believe, is the best group of communications experts in the North.”
In the last 12 months, Karol has added five new clients to its books, adding to its client list which includes Mental Health Concern, Eldon Square, Agilio Software, as well as outdoor brands Keela, Montane, Vango, EDZ, and Ventile.
Over the last two years, Fusion has worked with clients such as Northumbria University, the Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Collaborative Newcastle, The Great North Care Record (delivered in partnership with Karol), The UK Pellet Council (Biomass Heat Works!), AkzoNobel and Bernicia Group.
Karol Marketing was advised by Stephen Slater of RMT accountants, with Fusion PR Creative being advised by Stephen Willis of Robson Laidler. Legal services were provided by Paul Bell of Short Richardson and Forth, and Robert Phillips of Womble Bond Dickinson respectively.
