S4 Capital announces merger with award-winning design and experience agency Jam3:

Madison Alley advises Jam3 on strategic M&A transaction

The summary below includes excerpts from S4 Capital’s press release.

Madison Alley is delighted to announce that its client Jam3, an award-winning design and experience agency, has signed conditional definitive agreements to merge with MediaMonks, a leading global creative production company owned by S4 Capital, a global digital advertising and marketing services company established in 2018 by Sir Martin Sorrell, founder and former CEO of WPP.

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S⁴Capital plc (SFOR.L), the tech-led, new age, new era digital advertising and marketing services company, announces that it has entered into a conditional agreement in relation to a merger of Jam3, an award-winning Toronto-based design and experience agency, with MediaMonks, S⁴Capital’s Content practice. Through the merger, MediaMonks will deepen its creative capabilities and expand its presence in Los Angeles, The Netherlands, Canada and Latin America––with an all-new expansion in Uruguay.

Founded in 2004, Jam3 is a design and experience agency in Toronto, Los Angeles, Amsterdam, and Montevideo led by Pablo Vio, Michael Dobell, Mark McQuillan, Adrian Belina, Jordan Cuddy, Miguel Moraleda. A global agency, Jam3 has over 150 employees worldwide who uncover relevance, purpose and innovation in everything they do. Together with their client portfolio of brands such as Facebook, Sonos, Adidas, eBay, Levi’s and Crowdstrike, Jam3 launches new products and design platforms, bringing moving experiences to customers–digitally and beyond.

This merger represents the natural convergence of two partners with a shared regard for creative excellence, and award-winning work at scale on behalf of shared clients including Google, Facebook, Spotify, and Netflix. Jam3 and MediaMonks combine their global teams of powerhouse talent under a single P&L void of silos and barriers to productivity. Named two of the ‘10 Digital Agencies to Supercharge Your Marketing’ by Forrester, MediaMonks and Jam3 are two of the most iconic, award-winning teams who share a vision for the future of brand experience. With a 20-year track record for award-winning work, MediaMonks and Jam3 have topped the leaderboard in industry award shows around the world. Both members of the FWA Hall of Fame and the FWA 100 Club, MediaMonks and Jam3 have collectively earned 386 FWAs. More recently, Jam3 was awarded 2020’s Campaign US Digital Innovation Agency of the Year (Gold) – and MediaMonks won 2020’s Campaign Digital Innovation Agency of the Year in EMEA (Gold) and the UK (Bronze). With Jam3, MediaMonks and Superhero Cheesecake, S⁴Capital is one of the most awarded digital craft and design companies.

S⁴Capital Executive Chairman Sir Martin Sorrell said, “We are delighted to welcome the Jam3 team to S⁴Capital. Data-driven, creativity is at the heart of our offering and Jam3’s reputation, talent and client base are second to none. Jam3 is another key step in our seizing this decade and converting clients at scale to our new, unitary model.”

“With shared clients, a shared focus on creative excellence and a shared ambition to disrupt the market, Jam3 and MediaMonks are obvious partners,” said Wesley ter Haar, Founder MediaMonks, and S⁴Capital Executive Director. “We’ve long admired the work of the team at Jam3 and we can’t wait to see what we can create together.”

Mark McQuillan, Partner and Managing Director, Jam3 added, “Our ambition at Jam3 was to find a partner who can inspire us to multiply our efforts, together. We couldn’t be more excited to team up with The Monks and S⁴Capital for our next chapter.”

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The Madison Alley team, led by Michael Seidler and Tom Crowley, served as the exclusive strategic M&A advisor to Jam3 on its contemplated merger with S⁴Capital.

Mark McQuillan noted, “Madison Alley was the ideal partner to advise us on this journey. They enabled us the opportunity to meet with strategic industry leaders, prepared us for all stages of the process and were integral to us reaching this super exciting merger. Special thanks to Tom Crowley whose attention to detail, stamina and focus helped us reach the best outcome. On behalf of the partners at Jam3, thank you to the entire Madison Alley team!”

Tom Crowley, Managing Director of Madison Alley, commented, “It was an exceptional experience to work with each of the Jam3 Partners. We’re thrilled to see Jam3 and MediaMonks combine to create an extraordinary powerhouse of world-class strategy, creative design and content production for forward-thinking global brands. Congratulations to Jam3, MediaMonks and S⁴Capital!”

The terms of the transaction were undisclosed.

“Jam3 is design and experience agency known for smart, innovative and inspired work. We work closely with our clients to first understand their problems and then solve them in creative ways. From our offices in Toronto, Los Angeles, Amsterdam and Montevideo, we team up with forward-thinking brands from around the world. Our partners include Google, Spotify, Microsoft, Adidas, Facebook, Ford, Sephora, MTV and Disney Pixar. Modesty aside, our diverse work has received global recognition from Cannes to The One Show, and even the Pulitzer Prize.” Jam3 was founded in 2004, and currently has over 150 employees. Their offices span across The Americas and Europe, with locations in Toronto, Los Angeles, Montevideo and Amsterdam. They provide a multitude of services, including Interactive, Digital Production, Web Development, Web Design, and Online Experiences. Their most recent projects include reimagining Complex’s Complexcon, digitally for a post-COVID world, and assisting Adidas create a “Newstand of the Future” pop-up shop in 2019.

“S⁴Capital is a digital advertising and marketing services company established by Sir Martin Sorrell in May 2018. Our strategy is to build a purely digital advertising and marketing services business, initially by integrating leading businesses in two practice areas: Content and Data & Digital Media, along with an emphasis on ‘faster, better, cheaper’ executions in an always-on consumer-led environment, and with a unitary structure. The Group employs approximately 3,750 people in 31 countries, across The Americas, Europe, the Middle East & Africa and Asia Pacific.”

MediaMonks is a global creative production company that partners with clients across industries and markets to craft amazing work for leading businesses and brands. Its integrated production capabilities span the entire creative spectrum.
From creative campaigns and content to bespoke development and design, MediaMonks works at the intersection of creativity and technology. Operating across teams, time zones, and technologies with an incredible in-house team of more than 1500 Monks, including recent S4Capital mergers. Its work is recognized by advertising and craft awards around the world, producing 131 Cannes Lions and 275+ FWAs to date.
Founded in 2001 and rooted in digital, you can find MediaMonks anywhere on the Web as well as in over 25 cities across the globe.

Madison Alley advises clients on strategic capital and M&A transactions, establishing market leaders and realizing premium value exclusively for digital marketing, advertising and media technology, data and services companies.

Led by former digital industry CEOs, strategic M&A and investment executives, Madison Alley’s distinct team has advised on landmark industry transactions, including the acquisition of BORN Group, the customer experience (CX) and digital commerce agency; the capitalization of Mobilewalla, the mobile consumer data insights provider; the strategic acquisition of Heat by Deloitte Digital to establish “the world’s first creative digital consultancy”; and the strategic acquisition of Cardinal Path, a leading digital analytics consultancy, by Dentsu International.