M&C Saatchi officially announced today the acquisition and partnership with Scarecrow Communications. After the purchase the agency will be known as Scarecrow M&C Saatchi. Scarecrow will retain its own identity and will operate with full creative freedom.
The announcement on the purchase and association with Scarecrow Communications in India follows that published by the agency on January 2018 about the opening of M&C Saatchi first ever office in Jakarta under the leadership of Anish Daryani(Founding Partner and President Director, Dami Sidharta (Executive Creative Director) and Elki Hendria (Executive Planning Director). The office in Jakarta (Indonesia)joined the other two already operating in SE Asia located in Malaysia and Singapore.
The M&C Saatchi Network has a unique ownership-partnership model: The network has a significant equity holding in each of their their individual associates.
Eight years operating in India
Scarecrow Communications has been operational for 8 years, and in that time has remained fiercely independent and entrepreneurial which has allowed it to achieve profitability and scale in a relatively short period. Today, Scarecrow Communications have an extensive roster of brands on AOR, across categories including Viacom 18, Capital First, Emami, Future Generali, Zee Learn, Alcon Novartis, SebaMed (USV Pharma), Lactalis, Radio City, VTP, Mahindra, Business Standard, arthimpact, Anchor Panasonic, Reliance Capital and more.
A win win association
Moray McLennan, Worldwide CEO, M&C Saatchi, said: “Our strategy is simple, find top talent in key markets and give it the freedom, responsibility and backing to flourish. Brutal Simplicity of Thought and an entrepreneurial spirit have been the key to M&C Saatchi outperforming the market. They are what clients both want and need.
It was relatively easy to identify Mumbai as a key market, it was more challenging to find the right talent. In Scarecrow, we have found this and wish them all the best.”
The CEO of M&C Saatchi, Asia, Richard Morewood said: “We’re delighted to welcome Scarecrow as partners into the M&C Saatchi Asia group. Manish, Raghu, Arunava and the whole team will add fantastic strategic and creative strength in India and across the whole region.”
In a joint statement, the 3 founders of Scarecrow, Raghu Bhat, Manish Bhatt & Arunava Sengupta, said: “We are very happy with this partnership. It’s no secret that in the past few years, we have had many suitors. But after meeting Moray and the partners in London, we were clear that M&C Saatchi is the perfect partner for Scarecrow and we are confident that Scarecrow and its employees will gain from this move.”
Image over the headline.- From left to right: Arunava Sengupta, Manish and Raghu Bhat (all of them co-founders of Scarecrow) and Richard Morewood (CEO of M&C Saatchi, Asia).© M&C Saatchi.
