Avenir Global, a Canadian holding company of communications firms, acquired UK-based PR agency Hanover – including its Middle East operations – for an undisclosed sum, the parties said on Wednesday.
Hanover is the firm that in 2017 acquired Bell Pottinger's Middle East operations in the wake of the Gupta public relations scandal in South Africa, and has operating licences in Abu Dhabi and Dubai.
Hanover Middle East’s leadership team, headed by managing director Jonty Summers, are to remain in place under Wednesday’s deal.
“Having just celebrated our two-year anniversary, Hanover Middle East has gone from strength-to-strength since launching in 2017,” Mr Summers said.
“[Becoming part of the Avenir Global network will position us to continue to deliver the highest level of strategic support for our clients on a global scale.”
The deal is part of Montreal-based Avenir Global’s ongoing strategy to build a “global powerhouse” of specialist communications firms, and follows its acquisition last November of London-based healthcare creative agency Cherry.
With the acquisition of Hanover, Avenir Global has 1,000 employees in 25 locations across North America, Europe and the Middle East, and annual revenues of £125 million (Dh603m), placing it in the top 15 biggest PR firms worldwide.
“We are building a powerful network of colleagues who are the best in their field and our goal is to provide our clients with bold thinking founded on research, insights and deep sector expertise,” said Avenir’s international managing partner Ralph Sutton.
“Hanover is hugely respected as one of the best and fastest growing agencies in the world and this transaction showcases our ambitions.”
