BrazilAccenture buys German agency Kolle Rebbe, adds 300 professionals
One of Germany’s leading creative agencies, Kolle Rebbe, has been snapped up by global consulting and technology giant Accenture. The bolt-on of Kolle Rebbe, which is Accenture’s third German acquisition in 2018, sees around 300 professionals join Accenture Interactive – the firm’s digital and creative division.
“With the addition of Kolle Rebbe to the Accenture Interactive team, we will greatly strengthen our ability to create, build and run the greatest customer experiences for our clients in Germany,” said Anatoly Roytman, head of Accenture Interactive in Europe, Africa, Middle East and Latin America. “The Kolle Rebbe team and their robust capabilities will complement and enhance our presence in Germany, and inject a greater level of creativity and data-driven experiences that we can deliver to our clients.”
Kolle Rebbe’s teams deliver brand-building and advertising campaigns that combine creative with a focus on digital customer interaction. The agency, founded in 1994, works for major brands in the country and region, including Google, Lufthansa, Audi, Ritter Sport, Netflix and TUI. With a headcount of around 300 – comprised of artists, designers, digital designers, technologists, concept engineers and copywriters – based in its Hamburg headquarters, Kolle Rebbe is Germany’s seventh largest independent agency by revenue.
With the addition of Kolle Rebbe, Accenture will, according to Matthias Schrader, head of Accenture Interactive Germany, be able to expand its portfolio of marketing and digital services to deliver a “better and more innovative customer experience” to its clients. “Together with Kolle Rebbe, we will have the ability to deliver end-to-end brand experiences, from activation in traditional media to targeting in programmatic channels and personalised content and e-commerce.”
Fabian Frese, Chief Creative Officer of Kolle Rebbe, added; “The advertising market in Germany is undergoing significant change. Clients are increasingly looking for agencies with global reach and a full-service portfolio from ideation to execution. However, one thing remains unchanged: creative ideas still matter. We believe that, as part of Accenture Interactive, we will have a stronger impact by blending creativity with strategy and technology to create truly differentiating brand experiences.”
He further highlighted the opportunities the integration will have for the firm’s talent. “By joining the global Accenture Interactive family, we will also bring new exciting opportunities to our employees.”
The deal comes just months after Accenture Germany acquired strategic design consultancy designaffairs, while in January this year Accenture Interactive purchased Mackevision, a Germany-based producer of computer-generated imagery and immersive content. A year previous, Accenture Interactive completed a major expansion in the country when it acquired a majority stake in SinnerSchrader, an agency with around 500 employees across offices in Hamburg, Berlin, Frankfurt, Munich and Prague, while in 2016 digital specialist dgroup was absorbed.
Globally, Accenture has made bolstering its position in the creative and digital space a top priority, with M&A the main vehicle used to attain market share. Among the largest recent deals are that of agencies Karmarama in the UK, Rothco in Ireland, The Monkeys in Australia, MOBGEN in the Netherlands, Chaotic Moon in the US and IMJ Corporation in Japan. The firm hoped to add MediaMonks to its roster this summer, yet lost the battle against the private equity arm of Martin Sorrell, the former CEO of advertising giant WPP.
For an overview of all acquisitions in Germany’s consulting industry, see the page Germany | Mergers & Acquisitions.
