Havas acquires PR Pundit

Havas has announced that it has acquired a majority stake in PR Pundit. Once the acquisition is completed, the agency will be rebranded as PR Pundit Havas Red.

 

With this, it has launched Havas Red, a global PR network into India.

 

PR Pundit was launched 25 years ago. According to a release, the agency serves more than 100 retainer clients and has a team of 160 employees across Bengaluru, Delhi NCR and Mumbai.

 

Archana Jain, founder and managing director, PR Pundit, will continue to lead PR Pundit Havas Red, reporting to Rana Barua, group CEO, Havas India and James Wright, global CEO, Havas Red.

  

Yannick Bolloré, chairperson and global CEO, Havas, said, “We are thrilled to welcome PR Pundit to the Havas family. The synergies between PR Pundit’s expertise, Havas India’s clients, and the global PR clients of Havas Red are exceptionally strong, setting the stage for many meaningful collaborations. With the backing of Vivendi and their extensive entertainment assets in India, the expansion into PR, communications and social media is a strategic move that aligns perfectly with the evolving landscape of the market and industry.” 

 

Jain said, "Joining Havas will enable us to enrich our services and geographic reach for the benefit of our clients. We are excited to lend our expertise and entrepreneurial drive as well as share our local PR understanding with Havas Red in our common goal of undertaking benchmarking work and fostering long term partnerships, with our people and clients. Our relationship is based on shared values to elevate service capabilities, open doors to new opportunities and embrace best practices from around the world.”

 

Barua added, “This acquisition once again reinforces our commitment of delivering comprehensive and impactful solutions to our clients. In our endeavour to offer integrated end-to-end communication solutions, we identified that the PR function was a missing piece. This acquisition brings together two extremely powerful entities, Havas Red which has presence across 15 global markets with unmatched influence and reach, and PR Pundit, one of the most respected PR agencies in India with unparalleled brand reputation and a robust clientele. I welcome team PR Pundit to the Havas India family. Together with Havas Red, I look forward to the beginning of an exciting journey.”