Prime Weber Shandwick Becomes Independent After MBO

(MENAFN- PRovoke) LONDON - Prime Weber Shandwick, the Stockholm-based creative and communications agency which has been part of The Weber Shandwick Collective since being acquired in 2014, has announced a change of ownership after a management buyout.

After a decade under Weber Shandwick's ownership, Prime Weber Shandwick is now fully owned by five members of the existing leadership team (pictured). The agency – which will keep its name – is now wholly owned by five members of its current leadership team: CEO Johan Dyrendahl, head of corporate communications Malin Severin, CFO Jens O'Konor, deputy CEO Krister
Nilsson and head of marketing communications Robert Aras.

Prime Weber Shandwick will become a branded affiliate of Weber Shandwick in Sweden and will remain a close partner within the global network. The Swedish business of management consultancy United Minds, which was originally part of Prime, is part of the MBO and will also become an affiliate, with Weber Shandwick retaining the United Minds brand globally.

Dyrendahl (pictured, centre) told PRovoke Media that the move was intended to“future proof” the Prime business:“This has been a discussion for some time; because of the conditions of the Swedish market and the unruly world around us, things are changing quickly. It's been a great decade together, but looking forward we feel what's really needed is speed and the ability to adapt to local conditions, and that trumps the benefits of being owned by the network.

“This arrangement gives us best of both worlds – entrepreneurial freedom and the power to innovate our business according to the Swedish market, with access to the global network, knowledge sharing, insights and tech developments. This close affiliate-ship and strong continued partnership as part of the Weber Shandwick family is a win for us.”

On the specific market conditions in Sweden, he said:“The Swedish market is innovative and over the past couple of years there has been a speedy transformation in the agency business and it's moving fast. For more traditional advertising agencies it's tough – we've been able to win business with our earned-first approach and we need to be able to adapt our offer even more speedily.”

And he added there had been mutual benefits for Prime and Weber Shandwick of their decade-long partnership so far:“Sweden is a small market if you are a global client, compared to Germany and others, so our share of business from the network is relatively small. The aim of Weber Shandwick buying us wasn't geographical, but to access our creative offering and commercial attitude. The partnership been beneficial – we've rubbed off on WS and inspired good things, and we've become more international and professional.”

Michael Frohlich, CEO of Weber Shandwick EMEA and global chief transformation officer, told PRovoke Media:“The impact that Prime has had on the network is remarkable. They've really helped Weber Shandwick lead the way globally in earned creative and will continue to do so. The change for the network will be very little – the way we operate with prime will remain the same, we will continue to import their creativity, clients will remain within the network, but from a business perspective this gives Prime more opportunities.”

Frohlich said Prime's creative approach had influenced the network across EMEA and globally:“Prime has always at a really high level from the creative perspective, and now Germany, Paris and the UK are starting to operate at that level. Our global chief creative officer Tom Beckmann was at prime, and remains part of the Weber Shandwick Collective – his talent is one of the big legacies of this partnership.”

And he added:“From my point of view, and that of our global leadership, we're excited for it because it allows one of our wonderful bright spot agencies to grow and evolve relevant to their market and sets them up for success.”

Prime's client portfolio includes outdoor power products manufacturer Husqvarna, paper and packaging company Billerud, and IKEA sister shopping centre group Ingka Centres. Since Prime was acquired by Weber Shandwick, the agency has won 14 Cannes Lions and many other accolades and has helped to transform the wider agency's approach to earned creative. Recently, it was the first communications agency to be nominated by the Swedish Government for the 2023 Export Prize for Cultural and Creative Industries.

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