PRovoke Media 07 Nov 2022 // 4:21PM GMT
NEW YORK — Ruder Finn has acquired Austin, Texas-based Touchdown PR, bolstering the firm’s expertise in enterprise technology.
The deal adds 65 people to Ruder Finn’s team as well as an Austin operation. The acquisition also expands Ruder Finn’s UK presence with the addition of an office in Basingstoke, England.
Touchdown CEO James Carter will report directly to Kathy Bloomgarden, CEO of Ruder Finn. Touchdown leaders will continue to oversee the agency’s teams in the US, Europe, Asia-Pacific and Australia, all of which will remain intact.
“The minute we met with James Carter we found with Touchdown it was just really great chemistry,” Bloomgarden said. “Our core offering in technology has continued to strengthen so this a great fit and very complimentary.”
Touchdown specializes in serving B2B and enterprise technology brands. Clients include Bitdefender, Exabeam, Cubic, G-P, Forter, and more.
Touchdown is Ruder Finn’s third acquisition this year. In May, the firm acquired Arlington, Virginia multicultural agency Comunicad as a means of bolstering the firm’s ability to reach Hispanic audiences.
In April, the agency acquired Peppercomm, the change communications-focused firm established by Steve Cody in 1995. That deal added Peppercomm's $9m in 2021 revenues and 29 staffers across New York, San Francisco and London to Ruder Finn's global footprint.
The acquisition is the latest in a series of recent deals by Ruder Finn to build on its capabilities in healthcare, technology, creative and change management. Other acquisitions include UK-based health tech firm Mantis (2021), creative and production studio Osmosis Films (2020), healthcare agency Jacobstahl (2020), change management and internal communications agency SPI Group (2019), and digital marketing firm RLA Collective (2018).
The recent acquisitions follow three consecutive years of sustained revenue growth for Ruder Finn, with 28% growth in 2021 and growth of more than 45% since the beginning of the pandemic in 2020. Ruder Finn reported global revenue of $112m for 2021.