• by Larissa Faw , November 18, 2014

One can almost imagine a scenario similar to NBA Draft Day where executives barter for their top selections, or in this case, agencies. Following the September 2 acquisition of Nurun, Publicis Groupe is integrating the global design and technology consultancy across its various networks with some locations becoming part of Razorfish Global, while others are becoming a new network under Publicis Worldwide.

First, Razorfish Global is absorbing Nurun's Atlanta office, including all of its clients, leadership and staff. Also being integrated into Razorfish Global are Nurun offices in Milan, Nancy, Paris, Québec City, Toronto and Turin. 

All of these operations will be moved into the network in a "coordinated and methodical process" over the next 10 months, executives involved said. The integration is being led by Jim Yang, Chief Strategy Officer for Nurun.
Once completed, the addition of Nurun brings the Razorfish Global staff count to more than 4,500 and over 40 offices across the globe.

"Razorfish Global was created to help brands drive business transformation on a global scale, and the primary ingredients for that are customer intelligence, technology, experiences and media," says Razorfish Global CEO Tom Adamski.

"Nurun’s operations in France, Italy, Toronto and Atlanta all contribute pieces that fit nicely into that value proposition. Atlanta offers strengths in digital and brand marketing. Toronto Adds deep retail and commerce platform development capabilities driven by human-centered design. France and Italy add key capabilities in innovation, design and technology consulting capabilities driven by deep consumer insights."

Meanwhile, Nurun’s offices in Montreal, San Francisco, Madrid and Shanghai will be integrated in to Publicis Worldwide proper to create a new digital network, under the leadership of chief executive Arthur Sadoun. 

"One of the core strengths you see across all of its offices is a primary focus on understanding their client’s customers — really understanding them on a human level," says Adamski. "We believe that’s the key to marketing in the 21st Century. And when you bring together the highest levels of customer intelligence with the rich heritage Razorfish has in developing leading-edge user experiences and technology innovation, you’ve got a really unique offering that no other agency can match."