Interpublic Group (NYSE: IPG) and The SpringHill Company, the Emmy award-winning media conglomerate spearheaded by LeBron James and longtime business partner Maverick Carter, have formed a joint venture, IPG x The SpringHill Company. This partnership will bring IPG clients together with The SpringHill Company’s community of diverse and influential creators, emerging talent and modern changemakers to create culturally relevant and purpose-driven content, partnerships, experiences and products. IPG’s portfolio of creative, media and marketing services specialists will leverage this joint venture to enhance their short- and long-form creative content for brand marketers.
The joint venture will supercharge The SpringHill Company’s mission to empower and elevate creators of color by connecting them to IPG high-profile clients and brands to support, shape and jumpstart influential, culture-defining projects. The SpringHill Company will partner with IPG agencies to offer brands unmatched access to the world’s most sought-after creative talent, allies, artists and athletes, delivering a unique and unfiltered perspective from The SpringHill Company’s strategic and creative production resources.
“Our industry has the opportunity and responsibility to engage with culture, to create messages that are both authentic and memorable, as well as to play our part in improving the world around us. In the ten plus years I’ve known Maverick I’ve watched and admired the way that he, LeBron, and the team from The SpringHill Company are changing the way the world thinks about the role of creators, by building one of the most powerful platforms for tapping into diverse talent and driving change. IPG’s people, clients and communities will all benefit from close collaboration with The SpringHill Company as we look to spark important, and sometimes difficult, conversations, elevate voices that need to be heard and help our clients connect with new creative perspectives and purpose-driven projects. The relationship that we are announcing and formalizing today will help us meaningfully accelerate progress on that journey,” commented Philippe Krakowsky, CEO of Interpublic Group.
The partnership, which was announced during a panel with key executives from IPG and The SpringHill Company at the Cannes International Festival of Creativity, is the first and only partnership between The SpringHill Company and a global advertising and marketing holding company. Brendan Gaul, global chief content officer for IPG Mediabrands and global president of TRAVERSE32, the IPG-backed independent development and production studio, and Taj Tsonga, VP and creative executive of TRAVERSE32, will lead the partnership for IPG. Chris White, EVP of brand partnerships, and Ricardo Viramontes, chief creative officer, will lead the partnership for The SpringHill Company.
IPG and The SpringHill Company will each dedicate resources to the joint venture, charged with identifying new opportunities to pair IPG’s clients with The SpringHill Company’s creative roster to launch projects including branded content, film, experiences, partnerships and products. Through the partnership, IPG and The SpringHill Company will leverage IPG’s industry-leading audience data and analytics capabilities to better understand and inform new projects and deliver consumer-first insights that reach individuals and communities with precision and impact.
“The world’s most culturally-connected brands understand that the power of their voice goes far beyond an ability to move product. IPG and The SpringHill Company share in that belief and want to offer brands a better way to connect with audiences–by giving voice to the untold stories, advancing issues we care deeply about and bringing forward the voices that represent who we are and the change we want to see,” said Devin Johnson, president, The SpringHill Company.
Recent productions from The SpringHill Company include “Hustle,” “Space Jam: A New Legacy,” “Self Made: Inspired by the Life of Madam C.J. Walker” for Netflix; the documentary “What’s My Name: Muhammad Ali,” distributed by HBO; the game show “The Wall” for NBC; Emmy award-winning series “The Shop;” and “These Hands” in partnership with P&G.
Specific terms of The Springhill Company/IPG deal were not disclosed.
