Shiseido looks to acquire NY-based ad agency for in-house duties

Shiseido has revealed its plan to acquire New York based advertising agency, Jwalk. This follows a four year relationship with the agency, which has worked on brands such as bareMinerals and Buxom brands for Shiseido, according to Adweek.According to the report, the acquisition will see the agency being integrated into the beauty brand’s US division, where it will serve as its creative agency in-house. Meanwhile, Jwalk will continue to retain and work with external clients, as well as pitch for new business opportunities that do not conflict with Shiseido. The agency has worked with clients such as Lacoste, bareMinerals, Equinox and Kenneth Cole, to name a few.Marketing has reached out to Shiseido and Jwalk for comment.In a statement to Adweek confirming the move, Doug Jacob shared the agency’s relationship with Shiseido was one which was unlike any other company it has worked with; and that the team is looking to be part of the next growth chapter for the Shiseido portfolio. Meanwhile Shiseido did not comment on the specifics of the deal.Following the move, Jwalk will work closely with Shiseido Americas Corporation (SAC), working with its brand teams from strategy to execution and concept to delivery to promote its beauty products. It will also see founder Doug Jacob serving as chief creative director for SAC, reporting to Jill Scalamandre, president of Shiseido’s Global Makeup Center of Excellence.This is not the first time a beauty firm has brought an agency in house. In 2015, COTY entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Beamly, a cutting-edge digital marketing firm based in New York and London.Beamly’s main focus was on driving audience growth and engagement for consumer brands in digital media.  While Beamly is active across all digital media including online video, its core capability suite centers around social media, where it has consistently outperformed marketplace benchmarks.  Specifically, COTY and its licensors will benefit from Beamly’s suite of social data benchmarking, content creation, content optimization and consumer engagement tools to deliver COTY’s brand strategies.