Dentsu to pick up 51% stake in Taproot India

Japanese advertising firm Dentsu Inc today said it has inked a pact with Taproot India Communication to acquire majority stake in the Mumbai-based company for an undisclosed amount.

Dentsu said in a statement that it will acquire 51 per cent stake in Taproot, but did not provide the deal value.

"Partnering with Dentsu will enable Taproot India to offer a more comprehensive bouquet of services to their clients and across larger market geographies," it added.

Taproot will continue to operate independently under the management control of its current leadership.

"...This alliance will give a significant fillip to our growth plans for India. Our collective vision is not to be the biggest but to be the best in the industry," Dentsu India Group Executive Chairman Rohit Ohri said.

Taproot's every day operations and management will remain unchanged, he added. "...With Dentsu as our partner we feel we can scale up several areas of our operations very quickly without losing what has been working for us so far," Taproot India Co-Founder and Chief Creative Officer Agnello Dias said.

Taproot India brings to Dentsu 33 full-time employees and a roster of clients that includes PepsiCo, Airtel, The Times of India, Polycab and Marico among others.

A wholly owned subsidiary of Dentsu Inc, Tokyo, the Dentsu India Group comprises three standalone full-service advertising agencies -- Dentsu Communications, Dentsu Marcom and Dentsu Creative Impact -- as well as Dentsu Media and Dentsu Digital.