Bain to acquire Kantar Australia division for $114m

The transaction is part of Bain’s acquisition of a 60% stake in Kantar’s global business for $3.1 billion, announced last month. Kantar’s Australasian operations, which are controlled by WPP AUNZ, were not initially part of the transaction. However, according to a regulatory filing, WPP AUNZ decided to participate in the global sale to simplify its operations and return capital to shareholders.

Kantar has 30,000 employees worldwide, providing brand and marketing research for 92 of the world’s 100 largest advertisers, as well as small businesses, national governments, media owners, and non-government organizations. The company researches consumer preferences in a variety of ways, including social media monitoring in 67 languages, online polls in 45 countries, and in-person interviews, of which it conduced more than 80 million last year.

“The sale proceeds will enable greater investment in the existing portfolio of companies to accelerate their growth potential and invest in new offerings and technologies that better serve customer needs,” said John Steedman, interim CEO of WPP AUNZ. “We expect to retain a close relationship with Kantar and work together, as we do now, to create better-integrated solutions for our clients.”

WPP launched Kantar in 1992 by consolidating its existing market research divisions and has expanded its capabilities since then through a combination of M&A, partnerships, and internal product development. The company reported revenue of GBP2.6 billion ($3.1 billion) for the 2018 financial year, with profit before tax of GBP219 million.

Bain’s previous dealings with WPP include the acquisition of Japanese advertising agency Asatsu-DK (ADK) in 2017. WPP held a 25% stake in ADK and initially sought to block Bain’s offer, which it said significantly undervalued ADK; the UK-based company later agreed to drop its legal challenge and accept Bain’s offer price.

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• Topics
• Australasia
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• TMT