WPP acquires design agency Made Thought to ‘raise the bar’ for creativity
WPP today announces the acquisition of a majority stake in branding and design agency Made Thought.
Made Thought will be integrated into AKQA, innovation company, and will join forces with Universal Design Studio and Map Project Office to form The New Standard, an industry collective.
The partnership hopes to give each studio creative independence, but also an opportunity for collaboration.
Founded in 2000 by Paul Austin and Ben Parker, Made Thought has 55 people across offices in London and New York, the latter of which opened in January 2021. Clients include Pinterest, Unilever, LVMH, and Paul Smith.
The acquisition of the majority stake is aligned with WPP’s accelerated growth strategy and focused M&A approach to further strengthen its core creative capabilities in marketing, communications and design, and follows the acquisitions of Universal Design Studio and Map Project Office, which both joined WPP in 2018.
It comes as the company also report strong results last month, demonstrating a desire for expansion.
Mark Read, CEO of WPP, said: “WPP is known for its creative excellence and our award-winning work that helps drive transformative growth for our clients. Bringing Made Thought together with Universal Design Studio and Map Project Office to create The New Standard will further strengthen our position as a creative leader and raise the bar for design that speaks to people across different platforms.”