AKQA expands to Portland to be closer to Nike

By Sarah Shearman, campaignlive.co.uk, Tuesday, 02 October 2012 12:10PM

AKQA is expanding its presence in the US after its acquisition by WPP, with the launch of two new offices including Portland, Oregon, allowing it to be closer to the headquarters of long-standing client Nike.

The primary reason for opening the office in Portland is to better service Nike, which the agency has worked with for more than 12 years. It will also be closer to the Portland headquarters of Nike’s creative agency, Wieden & Kennedy.

Through its Atlanta office it will be able to better service nearby clients such as The Coca-Cola Company, Turner Broadcasting, Delta Airlines and Coca-Cola, as well as Verizon Wireless, which has a big presence in the region.

The offices will employ around a dozen staff each and they are recruiting.

As well as better servicing clients, the agency claims the expansion is part of a strategy to tap the "talent pool" in the cities.

Plans for the new offices were in place before the agency was acquired by network giant WPP for $540m (£348m), in July.

According to Tom Bedecarre, chairman of AKQA, the business is expanding to "enhance our ability to make new connections and deliver solution for clients globally."

He added that the opening of its new offices represented its "commitment to a rich technology ecosystem and talent pool".

AKQA was founded in London in 1995 and now has 10 offices globally. The two new offices in the US add to San Francisco, Washington DC and New York.

In January, AKQA opened in Paris to better service Nike.

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This article was first published on campaignlive.co.uk