High-profile ad agency McMillan has merged with a U.S. firm as the Ottawa-based company continues to rebuild its business after emerging from creditor protection in 2020. McMillan, which was once the city’s largest advertising firm, announced this week it has combined with The S3 Agency, a New Jersey-based organization whose clients include BMW of North […]
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High-profile ad agency McMillan has merged with a U.S. firm as the Ottawa-based company continues to rebuild its business after emerging from creditor protection in 2020.
McMillan, which was once the city’s largest advertising firm, announced this week it has combined with The S3 Agency, a New Jersey-based organization whose clients include BMW of North America. Financial terms of the transaction, which was finalized on Monday, were not disclosed.
Under the agreement, McMillan will remain headquartered in Ottawa as a standalone subsidiary of S3. Gordon McMillan, who founded the company that bears his name in 1996 and served as CEO for most of its existence, becomes chief creative officer of the combined entity.
McMillan told OBJ the two companies have been working together since last July, when he and S3 co-founder Denise Blasevick were introduced to each other by a mutual acquaintance.
“He just called me and said, ‘I think you and Denise share culture, values and ambition. And I really think you would want to talk to her,’” McMillan said in an interview on Wednesday. “We knew within five minutes that we were on the same page and made a decision very quickly to combine on business development.”
The two firms have “grown very significantly” since they began sharing leads and tapping into each other’s expertise last summer, he added.
McMillan, for example, landed a record seven new accounts in the second half of 2023. The firm’s new clients include heavy hitters such as global data security giant Entrust, Bermuda-based insurance provider BF&M and multibillion-dollar industrial manufacturing conglomerate Vontier.
McMillan credits the firm’s partnership with S3 for helping accelerate its growth over the past 12 months.
“We knew it was working,” he said. “Once we knew we were a good fit, it was just a matter of going through some share swaps and that sort of thing.”
At about 18 employees each, the firms are similar in size. But McMillan said each brings its own specific attributes to the table – his agency has “a little bit deeper bench strength on the branding side,” he explained, while S3 is known more for its marketing campaigns.
The owners will eventually unveil a new name for the united entity. But McMillan, who has cautioned more than one client that rushing the rebranding process can be a recipe for disaster, says they’re in no hurry to make a final decision.
“We always say, ‘Take the time to do it right,’” he noted, adding the new name will likely be unveiled this fall. “So we’re taking on our advice on that front.”
