Dentsu Aegis Network Becomes the No. 2 Agency Group in India, Overturning 80 Years of Rankings

by  EVENTFAQS Bureau Industry Watch | February 20, 2017 | News

Dentsu Aegis Network Fountainhead MKTG

Dentsu Aegis Network has entered the top two bracket of the Indian advertising space to become the number 2 Agency Group in India. With this, Dentsu Aegis Network has now overturned for the first time the existing rankings, which have historically been in place for over 80 years in this country.

Despite being a late entrant in the Indian advertising space, Dentsu Aegis Network today is the fastest growing agency network for three years in a row. The group has steadfastly helmed some of the industry’s most successful acquisitions in the recent years including that of Milestone Brandcom, Dentsu Webchutney, Taproot Dentsu, iProspect (Communicate2), WATConsult, Fountainhead MKTG, Perfect Relations, Happy Mcgarrybowen and Fractal Ink. This has, in turn, not only helped it aggressively scale up its operations organically and inorganically in India but also expand itself to a 3000+ people network. It is pertinent to note here that the latest Fractal acquisition has now brought together a team of over 1,000 digital experts inside DAN, the largest in India, including the combined Isobar team and the existing network digital brands iProspect, WATConsult and Dentsu Webchutney.

Meanwhile, with Posterscope and Milestone Brandcom under its umbrella, Dentsu Aegis Network is not just the leader but a dominant player in the OOH space in India. It is also home to the most sought-after creative agencies of the country, the biggest social media agency in India and has the most comprehensive marketing communication offerings under its unique one P&L philosophy.

In the past year, Dentsu Aegis Network India took a huge leap with dramatic improvement in scale, making India a key contributor towards Denstu Aegis Network’s global revenue growth. While the business in India grew 300% of the market growth, the network went on to win some of the largest accounts in India, include Mondelez, Maruti (digital and creative), Carlsberg, Nokia, Microsoft, General Motors, British Airways, Allied Blenders, MasterCard, Sony, Hindustan Times, Panasonic and several other key accounts in the past two years. Digital business grew by 250% (industry average 30%) and OOH advertising by over 150% (industry average 6.1%). The network’s turnover growth stands at a 102% (Industry average 11%) while its revenue growth is over 100%.

Ashish Bhasin, Chairman and CEO Dentsu Aegis Network South Asia, said, “We are delighted to have overturned 80 years of history. I stuck my neck out and publicly announced our ambition and my superb team worked hard and smart to deliver what then looked like an impossible target, well ahead of time. We will use the rest of 2017 to further consolidate our position because from here onwards the top slots of this industry are likely to be, more and more, a two-horse race. I am also grateful to all Dentsu Aegis Network clients for entrusting their brands to us. We have changed the paradigm in our industry and will continue to strive to ensure that we keep raising the bar to global standards as we march towards a Digital India.”