• by Steve McClellan  @mp_mcclellan, September 13, 2011

Maxus, WPP's rapidly growing fourth agency network, is expanding its North American operations in the wake of two huge wins this summer that will bring roughly $2 billion in new business to the agency.

According to billings tracker RECMA, Maxus was the smallest but fastest-growing global media agency network in 2010, with nearly $4.5 billion in global billings -- up 28%. The shop is growing even faster this year, as billings approach $7 billion -- up more than 50%.

The agency is opening a new office in Los Angeles and establishing beachheads in Canada and Mexico. New presidents have been named for both markets, and offices will be established in Toronto and Mexico City, with added personnel.

"These investments demonstrate our commitment to the Maxus network," stated GroupM Global CEO Irwin Gotlieb. "The Maxus team has a lot of energy and momentum, and we will provide all the support and resources they need to keep growing and delivering for clients."

The big Maxus wins came nearly on top of each other in July. First Comcast awarded the shop its domestic NBC Universal TV and Universal Studios film accounts, with estimated ad spending of approximately $1 billion. Maxus prevailed over incumbents Horizon Media, which handled NBC, and Omnicom's OMD, which handled the film account.

A week later, S.C. Johnson selected Maxus to handle its nearly $1 billion in global media duties, handled jointly by Interpublic shops DraftFCB and Initiative.

"This is an exciting time for Maxus," stated global CEO Kelly Clark. "We're really pleased to be expanding our global network despite the challenging economic climate." Maxus is one of four global WPP media agency networks within GroupM, along with MEC, MediaCom, and Mindshare.

Maxus has hired Pamela Haupert Sullivan as the new managing director of the Los Angeles office, which will be up and running with a staff of 20 by Oct. 1, the agency said. LA will be the lead on the NBC Universal account, with an assist from Maxus' New York office, the agency said. The shop officially takes over the NBC Universal account on Nov. 1.

Sullivan was previously with OMD sibling DDB Entertainment, a unit of Omnicom. At DDB, she oversaw the Universal film and home entertainment accounts and the Universal Studios City Walk Hollywood account.

In Toronto, Maxus has named media agency veteran Ann Stewart as president, Maxus Canada. Stewart brings over 25 years of experience to her new role and joins Maxus from GroupM's Excelerator Media, a Toronto-based Maxus sibling agency, where she led a number of key GroupM client relationships in Canada. Toronto will oversee the shop's work for NBC in Canada.

In Mexico City, Maxus has named Hugo Gomez as CEO of Maxus Mexico. The office is being established there with accounts that include Astra Zeneca, UPS and Mazda. Gomez joins Maxus from GroupM sister agency Mindshare Mexico, where he was chief operating officer.

"Mexico is an extremely important market for us as we further develop our global network," stated Clark. "It's the gateway to Latin America for many marketers, and it's a priority market for many of our global clients."