MSQ Acquires 350-Strong German Customer Experience Agency UDG to Create Pan-European Digital Powerhouse

Next generation independent creative, technology and media company MSQ has acquired the leading customer experience digital agency, UDG (United Digital Group) in a transformational move to create a pan-European digital customer experience and tech powerhouse. 

UDG is a €40m revenue best-in-class customer experience leader, bringing together customer-centric design and creativity with deep expertise in engineering and technical delivery for long standing global brands including Porsche, Fendt, Bosch and Vaillant. Its 350-strong team across Germany and Spain will continue to be led by Co-Managing Partners Mathias Reinhardt and Florian Frey. 

MSQ’s vision of creating an international digital customer experience and tech powerhouse will be delivered through collaboration between UDG and MSQ’s 1,500 colleagues across Europe, North America and Asia. UDG’s capabilities will complement MSQ teams delivering digital experiences, products and transformation for clients in the UK and US. 

The acquisition of UDG forms part of MSQ’s ambitious organic and acquisition growth strategy, backed by investment from leading private equity groups One Equity Partners and LDC, to create multi-disciplinary hubs of scale in Europe, the US and Asia. In these hubs entrepreneurial agencies can thrive, collaborate and provide joined-up thinking to their clients, fusing together data, technology and creativity to create brand momentum. 

MSQ’s depth and breadth of capabilities - bringing additional skills across data, research and insights, brand strategy, B2B marketing and performance media - together with its global footprint and its collaborative culture, attracted UDG to join as it looked for its own growth platform. The move will allow UDG to grow its presence into more markets where its clients operate while presenting opportunities for MSQ’s agencies to expand into Europe. 

Peter Reid, Global CEO of MSQ, said: “The acquisition of UDG is a bold and significant move for us as we build our customer experience and tech capabilities across digital experience, digital product, digital transformation and digital commerce to deliver for international and global organisations. 

“The creation of an international digital customer experience and tech powerhouse, initially in Europe and then rolled out into North America, creates rich opportunities for cross-pollination across our agencies, building momentum, strength and depth in what we can deliver for clients.” 

Co-Managing Partners Mathias Reinhardt and Florian Frey, said: “MSQ’s capabilities, investment and entrepreneurial ethos make it the ideal platform for UDG to truly scale the work we do for our German-based clients on an international scale. 

“We admire MSQ’s operating model and its people and look forward to making UDG the best it can be, working collaboratively with our new MSQ colleagues to bring new opportunities, experiences and skills to the benefit of our agency, our team and our clients.” 

MSQ’s Executive Director, Ben Rudman will work closely with Mathias, Florian and the broader UDG and MSQ teams. He added: “UDG has built an enviable agency delivering for leading global brands. Their enviable customer experience and engineering capabilities build on and complement those within MSQ and I look forward to welcoming Mathias, Florian and the UDG team to the MSQ family as we work to deliver our collective vision.” 

Founded in 2011, UDG has been part PIA Group, owned by private equity firm Equistone, since 2019. In addition to the automotive and manufacturing sectors, UDG works across FIS/banking, public and pharma and healthcare, with key clients including State of Rhineland-Palatinate and Deutsche Telekom. 

Its relationship with Porsche spans over 20 years, delivering leading transformational digital customer experience services tailored across global markets, harnessing technology platforms such as Contentful, Sitecore, Crownpeak, Google, Microsoft and Storyblok. 

Earlier this month MSQ acquired New York-based creative agency SPCSHP, providing an extra springboard for growth as it more than doubles MSQ’s presence in the States and takes annual revenues there to $100m.