• by Larissa Faw , April 6, 2018

Connelly Partners is making its first international acquisition as the Boston-based agency buys Ireland's Strategem to give clients access to a deeper, more cost-effective source of technology resources and a gateway to scale to a new audience of European brands. 

Terms of the deal were not disclosed; the two agencies have a combined revenue of $25 million.

The Dublin-based shop will be renamed as Connelly Partners Dublin, with Keith Lee, who founded Strategem in 1998, will serve as managing director. The digitally focused advertising agency's client roster includes Bus Éireann, Expressway, BWG Foods, EUROSPAR, Shannon Group, Diageo, University of Limerick, Tipperary County Council and Our Lady's Hospice.

“Dublin is the digital capital of Europe, with a staggering amount of technology talent and technology companies. We are going there to be a part of it,” says Steve Connelly, president, Connelly Partners. “As an independent agency, we can take risks to better serve our clients’ future needs.”

Courtney Doyle, partner, director of organizational development at Connelly Partners in Boston, will serve as the point of connection and integration between the two offices.

Employees from Connelly Partners Boston have already started to relocate overseas to augment Connelly Partners Dublin’s account and technology teams. Additional talent from Connelly Partners Boston will relocate to Dublin over the next year. Connelly Partners previously employed 150 workers, and now totals 170 people with the added Dublin staff.

The two agencies have previously worked together, covering similar clients focused on transportation, tourism, beer, healthcare fashion and education. Both felt combining their resources would be beneficial for clients seeking more international opportunities.

For its part, Connelly Partners concentrated on Ireland because it is home to one of the youngest workforces in the world and is poised to become the only native English-speaking country in the European Union as a result of Brexit. Further, 80% of global technology companies are based in Ireland, including Facebook, Google and HP, per IDA Ireland.