Nick Garrett.
Omnicom Oceania has acquired the majority of CX Lavender, a customer experience agency, three months after the company had gone into administration.
The acquisition includes a team of approximately 20 employees, proprietary technology assets and CX Lavender’s brand.
“Customer experience has become a whole-of-business challenge for clients, and this acquisition accelerates our customer experience capabilities across the group," said Omnicom Oceania CEO Nick Garrett.
“The partnership marks another step in Omnicom Oceania’s progress moving beyond a traditional media and creative model into a broader marketing and customer transformation business.”
Founded in 1997 by Will Lavender, CX Lavender helped Australian brands deliver customer experience, loyalty, digital platform and transformation solutions that connect strategy with implementation.
In May, the company's administrators estimate total liabilities at nearly $1.6 million. But the company also has $827,717 cash plus other, unrealised, assets.
Eight staff, from a total 38, were made redundant in April.
The administrators identified 33 potentially interested parties. Of those eight signed NDAs and were provided with due diligence material.
“The team at CX Lavender, known to many in the industry as ‘Lavs’, brings deep expertise across customer experience, digital transformation and ecosystem delivery," said Omnicom Oceania COO Adrian Paul.
"What attracted us most was the quality of the team, their technical capability and the strong client partnerships they’ve built over many years.
“This acquisition will preserve the independent spirit and culture of Lavs, backed by the scale and capabilities of Omnicom Oceania.
"This investment strengthens the connected capability model we are building across Omnicom Oceania and further expands our ability to help clients navigate increasingly complex customer and marketing environments.”
CX Lavender chief creative officer Ryan Stubna said joining the Omnicom Oceania network gave them the opportunity to scale their capability and continue evolving how they helped clients design and deliver connected customer experiences.
"Our Client Services Director, KaLing Ng, and I are excited to retain our indie energy, backed by a powerhouse network," said Stubna.
“There’s a strong alignment in how both businesses think about the future of customer experience and the growing need for more connected customer journeys.
"Bringing our specialist capability together with Omnicom Oceania’s broader network creates exciting opportunities for both our team and our clients.”
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