Marketing & Advertising Buyout Acquisitions in 2026

Shamrock Capital, via its Clover Fund I, LP, has acquired Mutiny, a Los Angeles–based creative agency focused on connecting global publishers and brands with gaming audiences. Mutiny was acquired from Trailer Park Group and will operate as a standalone business under Shamrock, pursuing organic growth and strategic acquisitions.

Avenue Z, a Miami-based hybrid marketing and PR agency, has acquired Varfaj, a Shopify design and development premier partner, to build a full‑funnel growth platform for direct‑to‑consumer brands. Varfaj will be rebranded as Avenue Z, its founder David Conforti will join as Chief Growth Officer, and its Shopify development, CRO and proprietary frameworks will integrate into Avenue Z’s Miami headquarters to expand ecommerce and AI‑led commerce capabilities.

Custom Logos, a San Diego-based promotional products distributor, has acquired Builder Promotions, a Del Mar marketing and promotional-products distributor serving the homebuilding and homebuying market. Builder Promotions will operate as "Builder Promotions Powered by Custom Logos," expanding Custom Logos' capabilities and presence in the homebuilder marketing sector; financial terms were not disclosed.

Houston-based EWR Digital has acquired Modalpoint, an oil and gas market-insight and commercialization-strategy brand founded by Mark LaCour. The acquisition expands EWR Digital's advisory and marketing capabilities for oil & gas and other industrial B2B markets, with Modalpoint operating as an energy market insight and research platform under EWR ownership.

Direct Marketing Solutions (DMS) has acquired Johnson & Quin, a 150-year-old, family-owned direct mail production and marketing firm, combining complementary capabilities to form a larger national direct-marketing platform. The deal expands DMS's production capacity and Midwest footprint, preserves leadership continuity (Andrew Henkel becomes President of DMS; David Henkel joins the DMS board) and aims to deepen end-to-end, data-driven omnichannel direct marketing services.

Estonian casino-portal Boonuspart.ee has acquired Kasiino-boonus.ee to consolidate its position in the Estonian iGaming affiliate market. The deal combines Kasiino-boonus.ee's strong search visibility around bonus terms with Boonuspart.ee's broader editorial and comparison content to expand content depth, SEO strength and user experience; no player data is being transferred as part of the transaction.

Duggal Visual Solutions has acquired CSI (CSI Printing & Graphics), a Washington, D.C.-area print and graphics firm, to expand Duggal’s national production and installation capacity and add a presence in the Washington, D.C. region. The deal integrates CSI’s large-format and dye-sublimation printing capabilities and installation expertise into Duggal’s broader digital signage, fabrication, and creative services platform.

Front Row, a New York–based e-commerce and Amazon marketplace agency, has acquired Socium Media, a performance marketing and digital growth agency. Socium will merge into Front Row's integrated agency business to deepen performance marketing capabilities and expand Front Row's Connected Commerce platform, with Socium operating initially as "Socium, Powered by Front Row."

Creative Artists Agency (CAA) has acquired Beanstalk, a global brand licensing and management agency, and will integrate it into CAA Brand Management to expand its licensing and consumer-products capabilities. Sellers include JPE Capital, Beach Point Capital Management and the family offices of Lance Hirt and Brian Cooper; financial terms were not disclosed.

SourceCode Communications has acquired Rally Point Public Relations to deepen its media strategy capabilities and combine Rally Point's editorial storytelling with SourceCode's Storyhub AI-informed insight platform. Rally Point's team will join SourceCode immediately, with co-founder John Cook leading media strategy and fintech teams while co-founder Dorian Langlais departs to start a new consultancy.

Hakuhodo has acquired a majority stake in BCM Venture Integrated Co. Ltd., a Ho Chi Minh City–based integrated digital marketing agency, making BCM a consolidated subsidiary of the Hakuhodo Group. The deal is intended to strengthen Hakuhodo's digital and e-commerce capabilities in Vietnam and support its New One Vietnam network to deliver full-funnel marketing and DX services to Japanese and local clients across the region.

Ruder Finn has acquired Missouri Creative, a London-based creative agency specializing in visual storytelling, immersive 2D/3D design, animation and experiential brand activation. The acquisition strengthens Ruder Finn’s RF Studio53 creative platform, expands its capability to deliver image-first, AI-enabled brand experiences globally, and will see Missouri Creative continue operating from its UK office with founders Paul Brennan and Stuart Wood leading the team.

Montreal-based HubSpot agency Parkour3 has acquired ThinkFuel, a remote HubSpot consulting agency, in a deal effective December 1. The combination brings together ThinkFuel's technical CRM architecture expertise and Parkour3's marketing automation capabilities to expand capabilities and better serve B2B clients across Canada and the United States.

Mindgruve has acquired Hamburg-based commerce agency Ameo to accelerate its European expansion and deepen its retail media and Amazon execution capabilities. Ameo founder Sönke Hansen will join Mindgruve as SVP of Commerce for Europe; financial terms were not disclosed and Makanta advised Ameo.

Toptal has acquired No Single Individual (NSI), a curated talent platform connecting agencies with vetted independent experts in advertising, marketing, branding and social media. The acquisition expands Toptal’s advertising and brand capabilities and brings key NSI leadership into Toptal to ensure continuity and strengthen its professional services offering.

Power Digital (a tech-enabled growth marketing firm) has acquired Cardinal Digital Marketing to establish a dedicated healthcare division. Cardinal will operate as Power Digital's healthcare division, retaining its leadership and team while leveraging Power Digital's enterprise intelligence and measurement capabilities to scale healthcare-focused marketing services.

Herringbone Digital has acquired BluShark Digital, a Washington, D.C.-based legal marketing and local search agency. BluShark will continue to operate under its brand and leadership while gaining access to Herringbone's engineering, data, AI enablement, and shared operations to scale its SEO and local-market capabilities across Herringbone's legal vertical.

Chicago-based Bear Icebox Communications (BICOM) has acquired boutique PR and crisis communications firm Carson Stoga Communications. The acquisition expands BICOM's reputation management and crisis readiness capabilities; Carson Stoga's founders and senior leaders will join BICOM to continue leading crisis and reputational accounts. Financial terms were not disclosed.

Platinum Equity has acquired Czarnowski Collective, a Chicago-based experiential marketing and event production firm, from CEO Mark Nagle and the Nagle family. The deal includes a leadership transition (Jim Milanowski to become CEO) and signals Platinum’s intent to invest in systems, expand footprint and pursue strategic add-ons while preserving the company’s culture.

Wonder, the parent company of Grubhub, has acquired Claim, a restaurant rewards app that offers automatic cash-back incentives and a merchant dashboard for promotions and performance tracking. The acquisition will integrate Claim's guest acquisition and retention tools into Grubhub's merchant network, beginning with availability in New York City and a nationwide rollout planned for 2026.

Knoxville-based independent agency Tombras has acquired Portland, Oregon creative shop Opinionated for an undisclosed amount. Opinionated’s ~40-person team will operate as Opinionated, a Tombras Company in 2026 and transition to Tombras West in 2027, expanding Tombras’ coast-to-coast footprint and adding creative talent and capabilities to its data-led full-service offering.

EisnerAmper has integrated MLCworks, a Metairie, Louisiana–based digital marketing and growth advisory firm, in a transaction that closed in early January 2026. The move expands EisnerAmper's capabilities beyond traditional accounting and advisory services into digital marketing, leveraging the firm’s 2021 private equity backing to accelerate capability expansion.

San Francisco-based strategic communications agency Highwire has acquired New York-based The Bliss Group, combining the two firms to create an integrated marketing and communications partner serving technology, healthcare, and financial-services clients. The deal (terms undisclosed) folds Bliss into Highwire’s platform—expanding capabilities, sector expertise and bringing Bliss leadership into senior roles at Highwire while creating a combined organization of more than 250 professionals across North America.

SPINS, the Chicago-based provider of CPG data and commerce solutions, has acquired MikMak, a New York-based commerce intelligence and omnichannel orchestration software company. The acquisition expands SPINS’ shopper engagement and omnichannel activation capabilities by combining its attribute-rich CPG dataset with MikMak’s orchestration and measurement platform to better plan, execute, and measure marketing across digital and physical touchpoints.

Verndale has acquired Vaan Group, a Shopify Platinum design and technology agency, to establish a dedicated D2C commerce practice and deepen its Shopify design, build, and optimization capabilities. The deal expands Verndale's ability to deliver end-to-end Shopify storefronts, platform migrations, headless builds, and conversion optimization for DTC, luxury, and lifestyle brands.

PMG has acquired London- and New York-based influencer marketing agency Digital Voices to expand its global influencer and creator marketing capabilities. Digital Voices—whose team of about 70 employees operates across London, New York and Costa Rica—will bring proprietary tools (Chord and Composer) and creator-led services that will be integrated into PMG’s Alli operating system to strengthen PMG’s full-funnel marketing offering.

Elevate, a global integrated agency, has acquired Sweet Management Group (SMG), a chef representation and culinary consultancy led by Lonny Sweet. The acquisition expands Elevate’s capabilities into culinary marketing and talent representation, adding SMG’s roster of celebrated chefs and enhancing Elevate’s offerings across sports, entertainment, hospitality, and brand partnerships.

QuinStreet, Inc. has closed its acquisition of SIREN GROUP AG d/b/a HomeBuddy for $190 million (approximately $115 million cash at closing plus $75 million in post-closing payments payable over four years). QuinStreet will integrate HomeBuddy into its Modernize Home Services business to expand its home services performance marketing platform, and expects the deal to be accretive to adjusted EBITDA (adding an expected $30 million+ in the first 12 months).