FLB looks to build a multi-skilled package

Cheltenham consultancy FLB Design is planning local acquisitions within the next 12 months, after taking a 49 per cent stake in advertising agency RPG Associates. FLB chief executive Phil Skinner says some initial discussions with other groups have already taken place.

The remaining 51 per cent stake in RPG is owned by the agency’s staff, in a deal officially completed last week. The previous incarnation of the company had been placed in liquidation.

Skinner says client demand for advertising work, plus his previous association with RPG when it was a subsidiary of Saatchi and Saatchi, prompted the move. “We have been looking for some time at the possibility of investing in an agency that offers a complimentary range of services,” he says.

Six RPG personnel, divided equally between creatives and account handling staff, have moved into FLB’s offices, but it will continue to operate as a separate company.