By region, 66% of MARCO Group’s revenue comes from Europe (including 40% from Spain), 20% from global operations, 8% from Africa, and 6% from LATAM.
The group has postponed its planned listing on the Euronext Paris due to unfavourable stock market conditions.
Madrid, 29 January 2024 – MARCO Group continues to record stable growth, achieving a 9% increase in revenue compared to the previous year. By the end of 2023, the consultancy registered €16.5 million in revenue, up from €15.2 million in the previous financial year.
Additionally, MARCO strengthened its video and film production capabilities with the acquisition of Carmela. Despite these investments, the agency achieved an EBITDA of €1.3 million in 2022. MARCO expects to close the 2023 financial year with a further 15-20% increase in revenue, aiming to finalise the year with its planned stock market listing on the Euronext Paris. This move will support MARCO’s acquisition and international expansion strategy, with the goal of reaching €100 million in global revenue over the next five years.
Postponement of Stock Market Listing
MARCO has postponed its stock market debut on Euronext Paris due to unfavourable market conditions. The ongoing instability caused by the conflicts in Palestine and Ukraine, among other factors, has led the company to explore alternative options while waiting for stock market conditions to improve. Discussions with potential investors, including investment funds, private equity firms, and industrial partners, are ongoing, although no agreements have been finalised yet.
Expansion Plans in Europe
In parallel, MARCO is in discussions with several companies in Germany, France, and Spain to accelerate non-organic growth, particularly in the digital and public affairs sectors.
Since COVID-19, MARCO has recorded a 64% increase in revenue. The consultancy was one of the first to recover from the pandemic, achieving a 49% year-on-year growth in 2021 due to its diversification strategy and strong crisis performance. Growth continued in 2022 with an additional 15% increase. That year, MARCO made significant investments in expanding its London, Berlin, and Munich offices and launched MARCO Advertising, welcoming Xabier Olazabal and a creative team led by Carlos Bustamante.
Strategic Acquisitions and Expansion
MARCO Group includes:
- MARCO Agency (formerly Marco de Comunicación)
- Digital agency Influencia
- Business media outlet Ejecutivos
- Production company Carmela
- Africa Communications Group
- MARCO Inc (USA)
- MDC Marketing et Communication (Morocco)
The group’s growth strategy for 2024-2028 focuses on acquisitions (M&A) and organic expansion. If market conditions allow, MARCO plans to progressively acquire agencies operating in individual markets, starting with Germany and France (2024-2025), the UK (2025-2026), and the US (2027-2028). The agency aims to acquire local agencies, increasing revenue from new clients while expanding these agencies’ services and integrating them into MARCO’s multi-market model.
Global Operations and Market Distribution
MARCO operates across 17 offices on four continents and provides a broad range of services, including Design, Video Production, Creative Services, Advertising, Event Management, Influencer Marketing, Social Media Management, Media Relations, Public Affairs, Crisis Communications, Internal Communications, and Consulting.
Growth has been particularly strong in Latin America and Africa, following the acquisition of Africa Communications Group, as well as in departments such as MARCO Advertising, launched in 2022. MARCO’s multi-market, multi-service model enables it to connect international markets and offer integrated services with a 360-degree approach, leveraging earned, owned, and paid media.
- 69% of revenue comes from Europe, where MARCO has seven offices.
- 6% of revenue is generated in Africa, with offices in Morocco, South Africa, Kenya, and Côte d’Ivoire.
- 5% comes from LATAM, with offices in Brazil, Mexico, and Colombia.
- 20% of MARCO’s business is global, serving clients such as the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO), European Environment Agency (EEA), Union for the Mediterranean (UfM), European Investment Bank (EIB), DG EAC, Iberdrola, and Applus+.
Key Growth Areas: Creativity, Digital & Audiovisual
Among MARCO’s services, the fastest-growing divisions include Creativity, Digital, and Audiovisual.
- Media Relations and Consulting services account for nearly 50% of revenue.
- Digital services represent 18% of revenue.
- Events now account for 16% of revenue, with notable projects including Prime Video premieres, junkets, and screenings, as well as major brand activations such as Danone’s stand at Alimentaria 2022.
- Internal Communications has grown significantly, with major clients including Iberdrola and Applus+.
The Digital division has doubled its activity, hiring key talent in Paid Media, Social Media, and Influencer Marketing. MARCO operates internationally based on language rather than geography, managing social media for Canva in six languages across multiple markets, including Spanish, French, Turkish, Italian, Portuguese, and German.
The Events division has become a major revenue driver, specialising in large-scale in-person and hybrid events.
The Audiovisual department now contributes 6% of total revenue, with significant investments in advertising campaigns and corporate content production. The acquisition of Carmela has further strengthened MARCO’s storytelling capabilities, particularly for advertising and branded content campaigns.
Strengthening Organisational Structure
To support MARCO’s anticipated growth, the company has restructured and promoted key executives, including Paul Baeyaert, who has been appointed Head of EMEA and joins the company’s board of directors.
In 2022, MARCO expanded its presence in Europe by opening new offices in London, Berlin, and Munich, strengthening its German market reach. MARCO’s German operations already account for 2% of total revenue in the first year.
Launch of KENZ Foundation
In 2022, MARCO launched KENZ Foundation, aligned with the agency’s mission to foster global understanding. The foundation promotes young talent across continents through scholarships and employment opportunities, aiming to break down cultural prejudices. Initially, KENZ Foundation will operate in Africa and Europe, serving as an educational catalyst for young professionals.
About MARCO
MARCO is the Madrid-based independent global communications agency with the highest client ratings among large agencies according to the latest PR SCOPE 2023* report.
Specialising in brand building and reputation management, the agency is led by Noelia Cruzado and Diana Vall as co-CEOs of MARCO. Formed by a team of nearly 200 consultants, it has its own offices in Madrid, Barcelona, Lisbon, Paris, Brussels, Milan, Berlin, Munich, London, Miami, Mexico City, São Paulo, Casablanca, Johannesburg, Abidjan and Nairobi, as well as affiliated MSL offices in more than 100 markets.
MARCO is a pioneer in presenting the new paradigms of communication, which consist of transcending obsolete frontiers. For this reason, it is the first communication agency to produce a docuseries, The “New Frontiers of Communication” available on Amazon Prime Video and its own website. The docuseries is based on MARCO’s patented methodology, known as TFCOM® (Transcending Communication Frontiers).
MARCO has acquired the magazine Ejecutivos and has relaunched Ejecutivos.es with the aim of positioning it as the Spanish-speaking online media of reference in the economic and business sector in Spain and Latin America. It has also acquired the consultancy Africa Communications Group (ACG) to maximise its geographical reach in Sub-Saharan Africa. MARCO also recently acquired the production company Carmela, to strengthen its capacity to produce first-class national and international advertising spots, as well as videos for branded content.
Founder and Executive Chairman of MARCO, Didier Lagae, was Deputy General Manager at Edelman, Head of Reputation Management EMEA at Weber Shandwick, External Communications Manager EMEA at Levi’s and Global Head of Communications at The Body Shop. Didier Lagae was named 2019 European and Global PR Professional of the Year by PRWeek and the Stevie Awards, respectively, coinciding with the publication of his book, ‘A Country Brand, a Branded Country’. Didier is also a Climate Leader for Al Gore’s The Climate Reality Project.
*PR SCOPE 2023 – category of consultancies with more than 15 clients participating in the showcase.
For further information, please contact:
Víctor Castell – victor@marco.agency – 626 236 341