3Q Digital

Canaccord Genuity Advises Growth Marketing Agency 3Q Digital on its Merger with DEPT®

Combined Agencies will have +3,000 Specialists Supporting +65 Languages and Campaign Experiences in +180 Markets While Managing +$3 Billion in Digital Media Spending 

Canaccord Genuity is pleased to announce it has advised 3Q Digital, Inc., the disruptive growth marketing agency for brands including Pandora, Skechers, Titleist, and Uniqlo, on its merger with global digital agency DEPT®, a portfolio company of The Carlyle Group (NASDAQ: CG). 3Q Digital’s team of 500 US-based experts will join DEPT® to deliver best-in-class data and engineering, creative automation, and personalization at a global scale. 3Q Digital is a portfolio company of PSP Partners and Erie Street. This is the second transaction Canaccord Genuity has led for 3Q Digital, having sold the business previously to PSP Partners and Erie Street in 2019.

3Q Digital is one of the world’s largest independent digital growth marketing agencies. Verified by TechCrunch as an Expert Growth Marketing Agency, it has built an impressive portfolio of clients in a range of verticals through paid media, business strategy, decision sciences, creative, SEO, and content. 3Q Digital has ranked in both Ad Age’s and Inc.com’s Best Places to Work lists in 2020 and 2021 and was also recognized as one of Adweek’s Fastest Growing Agencies in 2019.

Founded in Amsterdam in 2015, DEPT® is a pioneering technology and marketing services company that creates end-to-end digital experiences for brands such as Google, Diageo, Philips, Audi, Twitch, Patagonia, eBay, and more. Its team of more than 2,500 digital specialists across more than 30 locations on five continents delivers pioneering work on a global scale with a boutique culture. DEPT® is committed to making a positive impact on the planet and has been Climate Neutral and B Corporation certified since 2021. In addition to 3Q Digital, six other agencies have joined the company over the past year. With more than $500 million in expected 2022 net revenue, DEPT® has established a significant operational footprint in Europe, North America, and South America, and is rapidly expanding its APAC presence.

​​​​​​​3Q Digital will be known as 3Q/DEPT™. Together, DEPT® and 3Q Digital will have 3,000 specialists who will support more than 65 languages and campaign experiences in more than 180 markets and will manage in excess of $3 billion in digital media spending, positioning it as one of the leading independent agencies in the world. To provide clients with one global tech stack, 3Q Digital’s proprietary solutions, including Qontrol™, will be integrated into the Ada by DEPT® proprietary martech platform after closing of the transaction.

With the combination, 3Q Digital’s shareholders will receive shares in DEPT®. Penny Pritzker, chairman of PSP Partners and former U.S. Secretary of Commerce, will join the DEPT® supervisory board.
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Canaccord Genuity, with a team led by Sanjay Chadda, Lexia Schwartz, and Charles Wong, served as the exclusive financial advisor to 3Q Digital, PSP Partners, and Erie Street.