• by Steve McClellan  @mp_mcclellan, July 6, 2015

Manifest Digital, a digital experience design agency, and McMurry/TMG, the omni-channel content marketing specialist, are combining to form Manifest, which will be based in Chicago and New York with offices in Phoenix, St. Louis, Saratoga Springs and Washington DC. Terms weren’t disclosed.

In addition to the existing services provided by both shops Manifest will also feature new specialized disciplines, including the healthcare industry-focused Manifest Life.

Manifest will be led by Jason Benedict, CEO of Manifest Digital since 2006. Joining the management team is Jamie Anderson as Chief Strategy Officer. He was formerly Director of Brand Strategy and Customer Experience at SapientNitro, part of Publicis Groupe.

The combined company will have 400 employees and a management team comprising executives from both McMurry/TMG and Manifest Digital. In addition to Benedict and Anderson, the leadership team includes: Carryn Quibell as President; David Barron as COO/CFO; Simon Goodship as Chief Experience Officer; Keith Sedlak as head of business development; and Beth Tomkiw as head of the new healthcare offering, Manifest Life.

Benedict said, “Our clients are looking for new ways to engage with their customers. As a result, the demand for fantastic user experience is growing exponentially. And when wonderfully crafted experiences are joined with amazing content the result is incredible business results for clients.”

As to why he joined the company, Anderson said he was attracted by “the potent combination it creates by marrying journalistic-quality content creation with industry-leading experience design. This agency is built on the recognition that content—not delivery by itself—is the means to cultivating long-term customer relationships. We have 175 staff devoted to long- and short-form content creation—editors, journalists, artists, and video producers—across six studios in key client markets. It’s the first combination of its kind at this scale.” 

The combined agency’s client list will include Abbott; Allstate; BMW; Baylor Health Care System; Delta Faucet; Enterprise Holdings, Inc.; Express Scripts; The Ritz-Carlton; Kohl’s; Motorola; Nestle Purina Pet Care Company; Post Holdings; WebMD, and UPS.

The agency said its combined 2015 revenue will place it in the top 100 agencies in the U.S and the top 12 independent agencies.

With access to $400 million in capital, the combined business has national and global expansion plans, focusing on the West Coast, Europe and the UK. The agency plans to make acquisitions in complementary businesses in the next 12 months.

The Wicks Group of Companies worked with Manifest Digital and McMURRY/TMG (it brought together McMurry and TMG in 2013) to structure the transaction.