Grey Group advertising set to acquire major stake in SA’s Volcano Group

South Africa’s ad industry is being shaken up. The global advertising and marketing agency, Grey Group, is today re-entering the South African market after it agreed to acquire a majority stake in The Volcano Group — one of the country’s fastest growing advertising communications groups.

The Volcano Group, in turn, is rebranding as Grey Africa, which will focus on developing a strong local presence in South Africa as well as lead the brand’s expansion in other key African markets.

Grey has been operating since 1917 and was recently voted AdWeek’s Agency of 2013. “The Grey Group ranks among the world’s top advertising and marketing organisations, with an enviable global footprint,” says Volcano’s Group Managing Director, Paul Jackson. “Grey’s credentials and achievements are impressive and their unique positioning of ‘Famously Effective’ resonates with the same values that have guided Volcano to success.”

Volcano has been operating for over 20 years and boasts a list of both local and international awards and prestigious recognition for its work. The agency has also been the lead in sub-Saharan Africa for ICOM, one the world’s largest group of independent agencies, when it successfully managed a network of 27 agencies throughout the MEA region.

“By combining Volcano’s integrated marketing and communications capabilities with Grey’s proven expertise, I am confident that our multi-faceted service offering will provide clients with a new level of excellence,” adds Jackson.

David Patton, President and CEO of Grey Europe, the Middle East and Africa, notes: “The most important outcome of this exciting partnership is the acquisition of talent and expertise that will re-ignite our efforts in establishing a dynamic South African presence for Grey and will also allow us to truly focus on serving international clients across the African continent.”