St Ives agrees acquisition of Health Hive Group

St Ives has agreed a deal to acquire healthcare and pharmaceutical sector consultancy and comms agency the Health Hive Group.

The company will pay 20.9 million pounds to purchase Hive as part of a wider strategy to create a complementary range of marketing services, offering further value to new and existing clients.

Following the takeover, Hive will operate as a subsidiary of St Ives, managed from its current London headquarters by its existing management team, which includes Ian Busby, Jas Hummel and Tim Scorer.

The agency was founded in 2008 and employs more than 75 staff members. It generated revenue of 5.9 million pounds in 2012, growing to 9.1 million pounds last year, according to figures from its unaudited accounts.

Patrick Martell, chief executive of St Ives, said: "Hive's offering of consultancy services and digital solutions complements St Ives' existing marketing services businesses and the acquisition considerably increases our credentials in the large and very attractive healthcare and pharmaceuticals industries."

The group already serves a wide range of healthcare sector clients, including the World Cancer Research Fund, GlaxoSmithKline and the Great Ormond Street Hospital Charity.