Stagwell Buys UK Agency Goodstuff

Harris Poll owner Stagwell Group has acquired UK-based media agency Goodstuff Communications, which as well as providing media planning and buying services offers analytics, audience research and insight, and digital audits. Terms of the deal have not been disclosed.

Established in 2004 by Ben Hayes and Andrew Stephens (pictured) as a communications and creative media agency, and incubated by Virgin, Goodstuff operated for seven years before scaling the business through the addition of media buying. The London-based company now employs a team of 130, who will join the Stagwell Media Network. Stagwell says the deal brings complementary and additional client services, including communications strategy, full-funnel media delivery, and 'inventive solutions' for clients.

Goodstuff, which will continue to be led by Hayes and Stephens, will now be able to provide clients with an additional range of solutions from across Stagwell. This is the first full acquisition since last August's combination of marcoms conglomerate MDC and Stagwell, owner of the Harris and Harris Poll brands.

Stagwell Chairman and CEO Mark Penn comments: 'We welcome Goodstuff as a critical part of our strategy to create a truly global and competitive media operation. When we created Stagwell Media Network, we set out to build a collaborative and coherent network of global media agencies that are on the leading edge of media, data and technology. The addition of Goodstuff with their unrivalled track record of innovation continues to deliver on our vision of transforming marketing'.

Web sites: www.stagwellglobal.com and www.goodstuff.co.uk .