Dive Brief:
- Shiseido Americas, a subsidiary of Tokyo-based cosmetics company Shiseido Company, purchased creative and digital agency Jwalk, bringing its services in-house for Shiseido’s brands, per a joint press release.
- The deal is one step in the company's overarching goal to accelerate the growth of its brands through digital strategies and consumer-oriented marketing.
- “I am convinced that Jwalk will add significant intangible value and capabilities to our marketing efforts, especially in leveraging their digital communication expertise," said Masahiko Uotani, President and CEO of Shiseido Group, in the press release.
Dive Insight:
The acquisition brings expertise and energy in creative content, digital design, and brand building to Shiseido at a time when “creative power and agility have never been more important to a brand’s success," explained Marc Rey, President & CEO of Shiseido Americas, in the press release. Rey added that the acquisition helps set Shiseido apart from the traditional approach to beauty marketing by making the entire creative process an in-house affair.
The move is the latest example of a major consumer product brand company ramping up its in-house marketing talent. It also points to the larger trend shaking up traditional brand and agency relationships as the entire advertising and marketing industry adjusts to a digital and data-driven approach. A number of consumer brands have taken steps to reconfigure agency relationships, shown a willingness to make some marketing functions more tightly controlled internally and decided to work directly with major digital platforms like Google and Facebook.
Jwalk was founded in 2010 and has previously partnered with brands in the beauty, fashion, hospitality, spirits and consumer packaged goods industries. The brand and agency have worked together for the last four years.
