Advent exits Tag to Japan's Dentsu in multi-million deal

Rachel Lewis
08 March 2023

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Advent International has sold its stake in UK marketing content group Tag to Japanese listed peer Dentsu for GBP 533m (EUR 600m).

Dentsu said in a statement that the acquisition would help its strategy of offering integrated solutions at the convergence of marketing, technology and consulting. The transaction valued the business at GBP 533m (EUR 600m), according to a report in The Guardian.

Advent acquired Williams Lea Tag in 2017 from Deutsche Post for a reported value of GBP 350m-400m. It later separated Williams Lea and Tag into two standalone businesses. The former remains under Advent's ownership despite being in a late-stage auction process ran by Rothschild in late 2021, as reported.

Advent said it has invested more than EUR 100m in Tag over its five years of ownership, helping it to develop an end-to-end, tech-enabled marketing activation platform. The vendor helped to execute six bolt-ons, it added in the statement.

Both businesses are held via Advent International GPE VIII, a 2016 vintage, according to their financial accounts. The vehicle still holds two Germany-based businesses: payments processor Concardis and industrials group Roehm. Alongside Austrian gas engine producer INNIO, British shipping company V Group, and Czech pharmaceutical group Zentiva.

Company
Tag provides digital, personalised marketing for many of the world's biggest brands including New Balance, Calvin Klein, Ralph Lauren, Heineken and Unilever. It has 2,800 employees in over 29 countries across EMEA, APAC and the Americas.

People
Advent International — James Brocklebank (managing partner), Chris Benson (director).
Tag — David Kassler (global CEO)
Dentsu Group — Hiroshi Igarashi (president & CEO).

Advisors
Advent — Evercore (M&A); UBS (M&A); Weil (legal).
Dentsu — Lazard (M&A).