S4 Capital snaps up another agency despite claims it has expanded too quickly
S4 has announced yet another merger this morning between XX Artists and Media.Monks, which significantly expands the capabilities of its Content practice.
The combination augments its Social Media Marketing capabilities and expands its client base.
Headquartered in Los Angeles with a majority-female, majority-diverse team of 125 globally, XX Artists helps clients such as Google, YouTube, Logitech, and Ancestry.com formulate and execute their social and influencer content strategies.
In 2021, XX Artists generated Gross Profit in excess of $12m (£9m) with growth of over 100 per cent.
XX Artists is experiencing continued strong growth heading into 2022, with a number of client wins and remit expansions that have resulted in YTD booked revenues well in excess of 2021’s performance.
As with the recent TheoremOne deal, the S4 Capital stock component of the consideration is priced at £4.25.
Sir Martin Sorrell, S4 Capital Executive Chairman said: “We are delighted to welcome Kyle and his colleagues to the family. Their exciting growth, diverse talent base and prestigious clients will help fuel the development of our best-in-class social media capabilities in the United States and internationally.”
Kyle Kuhns, XX Artists CEO and Founder, said: “Through our teams’ incredible efforts, we have been fortunate to experience fantastic traction at XX Artists the last many years. In our forthcoming partnership with S4Capital and Media.Monks, we are eager to provide exciting growth, development and innovation opportunities for our people and clients alike”.
However, a recent Sunday Times investigation slammed the company for its immense growth, revealing the finance team failed to accurately record sales on the computer system, and accused the S4-owned MediaMonks of regularly failing to pay social media influencers and other creditors on time.
It comes after S4’s shares plunged dramatically last month after the company announced it would be delaying its audit once again. Though Sorrell called this “unacceptable and embarrassing”, the series of delays raised alarm bells about the company’s financials.
The Sunday Times investigation even went as far as to suggest that MediaMonks still uses accounting software that insiders argue is inadequate for a company of its size.
Former WPP chief Sir Martin Sorrell has made a number of hefty acquisitions to bolster S4’s capabilities since its formation back in 2018, including a whopping $150m (£122m) acquisition of San Francisco-based ad tech company MightyHive.