WPP PLC (LSE:WPP) has announced the acquisition of Goat, an influencer marketing agency, for an undisclosed sum.
Founded in 2015 by Arron Shepherd, Nick Cooke, and Harry Hugo, Goat has grown rapidly, working with major brands such as Dell, Meta, Tesco, and Uber.
Goat will join GroupM, WPP's media investment group, and merge with its influencer marketing solution INCA to create the industry's first truly global influencer marketing agency with more than 300 employees in over 30 markets around the world.
Operating as part of GroupM Nexus, Goat will support GroupM's strategy of driving growth through performance, offering cross-channel and data-driven influencer marketing capabilities to WPP clients, investors were told.
In a statement, Mark Read, CEO of WPP, said: "Influencer marketing is a key growth priority for the industry and for WPP. Our clients are increasingly planning budgets at a global scale and require partners that have the global reach to help deliver while driving engagement and impact at a local level.
"Goat's proven track record in the influencer marketing space paired with GroupM's record of excellence will continue to build on our unparalleled expertise in this area."
The acquisition follows a series of recent purchases by WPP, including Village Marketing, 3K Communications, Fēnom Digital, Diff, Passport, JeffreyGroup, and Newcraft, as part of the company's accelerated growth strategy and focused M&A approach.