Bastion Elevate, IMW Agency Merge to Create Leading Integrated Marketing Firm in Southern California
Lead by CEO Christopher Bretschger, the newly rebranded Bastion Amplify offers expertise in P.R., media buying, design, social media and experiential marketing
ORANGE COUNTY, Calif., Aug. 02, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — In a move designed to provide the highest level of customer service, two leading Southern California-based marketing companies, Bastion Elevate and IMW Agency, have merged to create a new type of full-service firm that provides clients with a broad spectrum of services all managed under one roof with a single point of contact.
The combined entity, rebranded as Bastion Amplify, will be headed by CEO Chris Bretschger, the former president of IMW Agency. Former Bastion Elevate president, Shana Starr, will serve as president of Bastion Amplify. The terms of the deal were not disclosed.
“It is a tremendous honor to take the helm of such a talented group. When my parents founded IMW decades ago, we strove for growth through impeccable client service. This evolution continues that mission with a forward-thinking model that is fully equipped to meet the needs of the modern economy,” said Bretschger, who had held leadership roles for national advertising companies such as Doner Advertising and Deutsch LA as well as major brands such as Mazda North America.
The merger positions Bastion USA on an imminent trajectory to become the largest full-service independent marketing company on the West Coast, said Bastion USA CEO Dax Cornelius, who in addition to overseeing Bastion Amplify also presides over the rapidly growing Los Angeles- and New York-based Bastion db5, a consumer insights and strategy consultancy specializing in qualitative and quantitative research.
“We’ve executed a disciplined M&A strategy that captures and nurtures synergies by combining operations that do not compete with each other,” Cornelius said. “The result is a superior client experience unencumbered by friction within the consultancy or an overreliance on third-party outsourcing that typically comes with mark-ups in price.”
Bastion USA is part of the global Bastion Agency, Australasia’s largest independent agency with more than 360 employees working across offices located in Los Angeles, Orange County, New York City, Sydney, Melbourne and Auckland. It holds agency partnerships in 10 Asian markets as well.
“Too often in the marketing world, enterprises grow through acquisition without considering the unintended impact to clients. At Bastion, we put those considerations for the client at the forefront when making our deals, and this merger is the perfect example,” Cornelius said. “Elevate and IMW have each been winning new business and industry accolades at an impressive clip, but the gaps in their capabilities remained a challenge. Combining the companies not only fills those holes but provides clients with a diverse breadth of specialties. Each area of expertise is agency-deep, and there is no need for a brand to go to a P.R., ad agency and digital firm with opposing emotional and fiduciary responsibilities.”
Media inquiries: Contact Andrew King, director of public relations, Bastion Amplify, andrewk@bastionagency.com.
About Bastion Elevate: Bastion Elevate is one of the top public relations and digital marketing agencies on the West Coast, offering best-in-class services including media relations, executive positioning, product placement and review programs, corporate and executive messaging, crisis communication, social media, influencer campaigns, search engine optimization, web and app development, and digital marketing for companies across a variety of business and consumer industries worldwide. Its PR Practice has been ranked No. 1 in Los Angeles and Orange counties by Clutch, an industry scoring service informed by client reviews.
About IMW Agency: IMW Agency is an award-winning integrated marketing agency that aligns marketing activity. It delivers timely, analytically-driven programs that inspire customers to act. In an ever-changing media and marketing landscape, it provides the cross-discipline insight to effectively shape and grow brands.
Jonathan Winslow
jonathanw@bastionagency.com
