Publicis Groupe Expands Digital Health Expertise

Regulatory News:

Publicis Groupe [Euronext Paris: FR0000130577, CAC 40] (Paris:PUB) announced today that Heartbeat Ideas, one of the largest and most highly regarded digital agencies in the healthcare communications space, has joined the Saatchi & Saatchi Health entities in the U.S. to form a wholly new market player with unmatched strength and depth.

Heartbeat was founded in 1998 and employs a team of 90 members between its New York and California offices. Whether in mobile, social or online branding campaigns, Heartbeat's work has led to measurably superior results for a broad range of world-class healthcare brands. Heartbeat’s clientele includes Galderma, Janssen Pharmaceuticals, McNeil Consumer Healthcare, Novartis, Pfizer, Sanofi, Teva and XenoPort.

Both agencies are full-service agencies that share a common commitment to unconfined ideas and innovation in the healthcare space.

New York-based Saatchi & Saatchi Health Communications and Saatchi & Saatchi Wellness will now operate as one entity under the latter name. Heartbeat Ideas and its sister agency, Heartbeat West, will operate under the names "Heartbeat Ideas, a member of Saatchi & Saatchi Wellness” and "Heartbeat West, a member of Saatchi & Saatchi Wellness.” The combined agencies will be part of Publicis Healthcare Communications Group (PHCG), the largest health communications agency network in the world.

While digital disruption and healthcare reform have been unsettling the marketplace, Heartbeat has been pioneering new, often surprising solutions to address the unmet needs of patients, doctors, nurses, pharmacists and other emerging audiences of influence.

Each agency—Saatchi & Saatchi Health Communications, Saatchi & Saatchi Wellness, and Heartbeat Ideas/Heartbeat West—has been a market leader in their individual disciplines. Combined, they become a true powerhouse in the health and well-being space.

Heartbeat Founder and CEO Bill Drummy will remain at the helm of Heartbeat and will join the leadership team at Saatchi & Saatchi Wellness with Co-Managing Directors Kathy Delaney and JD Cassidy. The newly combined agency and leadership team will report to Sam Welch, PHCG Global Group President. Kathy Delaney will also retain her role as a Global Chief Creative Officer at PHCG.

Heartbeat’s existing management team will also remain in place, as will its independent locations in New York’s TriBeCa neighborhood and in Santa Monica, California.

Drummy said, "For fifteen years, we’ve been on a mission to bring a more effective, digitally-forward approach to healthcare marketing. By becoming a member of Publicis Groupe and Saatchi & Saatchi Wellness, we now have the opportunity to be a critical ingredient in an entirely new agency formulation for healthcare clients, one that is thoughtfully designed to turn the new realities of the rapidly changing healthcare marketplace to our clients’ advantage.”

Nick Colucci, President and Chief Executive Officer of Publicis Healthcare communications Group (PHCG) added, "We are thrilled to welcome Heartbeat to the PHCG family of agencies. Its addition to our flagship Saatchi & Saatchi Wellness brands in the U.S. demonstrates our deep understanding of our clients’ need to have a communications partner that can look at their brands holistically and provide interconnected and innovative solutions.”

Jean-Yves Naouri, COO of Publicis Groupe, declared, "This acquisition is a reflection of our continued investment in digital and our faith in the power of health and wellbeing as an increasing part of the world’s conversation.”

About Publicis Groupe

Publicis Groupe [Euronext Paris FR0000130577, part of the CAC 40 index] is the third largest communications group in the world, offering the full range of services and skills: digital and traditional advertising, public affairs and events, media buying and specialized communication. Its major networks are Leo Burnett, MSLGROUP, PHCG (Publicis Healthcare Communications Group), Publicis Worldwide, Rosetta and Saatchi & Saatchi. VivaKi, the Groupe's media and digital accelerator, includes Digitas, Razorfish, Starcom MediaVest Group and ZenithOptimedia. Present in 104 countries, the Groupe employs 53,000 professionals.
Web: www.publicisgroupe.com | Twitter:@PublicisGroupe | Facebook: www.facebook.com/publicisgroupe

About Publicis Healthcare Communications Group

Publicis Healthcare Communications Group (PHCG) is the largest health-oriented agency network in the world. A division of Publicis Groupe, PHCG manages top-tier agencies specializing in promoting innovative solutions in advertising, medical education, sales and marketing, digital, market access, and medical and scientific affairs. PHCG is dedicated to creating experiences that compel action, change lives, and amplify business outcomes. With nearly 5,000 employees, PHCG manages nearly 12 agency brands through 58 offices located in 11 countries. PHCG’s global brands are Saatchi & Saatchi Health, Publicis Life Brands, Digitas Health, Razorfish Healthware, Discovery, Medicus International, Publicis Health Media, and Publicis Touchpoint Solutions.
Web: www.publicishealthcare.com | Facebook: www.facebook.com/publicishealthcare

About Saatchi & Saatchi Wellness

Saatchi & Saatchi Wellness is a fully integrated wellness agency. The agency handles integrated marketing for clients along the entire wellness spectrum including Nestle, AbbVie, Allergan and Sanofi, among others. The agency provides a full-range of marketing solutions including advertising, digital, direct promotion and social marketing strategies. The agency was created to leverage the value of marketing wellness as a differentiator for healthcare, lifestyle, food and other brands. Saatchi & Saatchi Wellness is a unit of Saatchi & Saatchi Health, part of Publicis Healthcare Communications Group, the largest healthcare communications network in the world.
Web: www.saatchiwellness.com | Blog: www.saatchiwellness.com/articles

About Heartbeat Ideas and Heartbeat West
Web: www.heartbeatideas.com | Twitter:@heartbeatideas | Facebook: www.facebook.com/heartbeatideas