MMGY Global bolsters Los Angeles and New York City operations; grows footprint with Chicago, San Francisco and Vancouver expansion.
KANSAS CITY, MO – MMGY Global announced that it has acquired Wagstaff Media & Marketing, a leading integrated public relations and marketing agency specializing in the travel, culinary and hospitality lifestyle industries. The firm, which will become known as MMGY Wagstaff, was founded by recognized industry leader Mary Wagstaff more than 20 years ago.
MMGY Global’s ongoing strategy is to grow its global footprint and ability to service existing and prospective clients worldwide. The deal marks MMGY Global’s further geographic expansion in North America, significantly boosting its West Coast presence and senior talent, doubling the size of its public relations practice and enhancing the agency’s expertise with travel tangential categories including lifestyle, wine and spirits, and culinary. With the addition of Wagstaff’s San Francisco and Chicago locations, MMGY Global will now have over 500 employees and operate in 13 markets globally: Austin, Chicago, Denver, Detroit, Fort Myers, Kansas City, Miami, London, Los Angeles, New York City, San Francisco, Vancouver and Washington, D.C.
“We are excited to welcome Mary and her team to MMGY Global as we continue to build a powerhouse integrated agency. Mary is a known star-maker in our business, and we are strengthened by her wisdom and guidance,” said Clayton Reid, CEO of MMGY Global. “Wagstaff’s long-standing senior management team, expertise and client base in hospitality lifestyle and F&B add a new dimension to our business and support our position on the evolution of travel.”
Mary Wagstaff will remain an integral part of the business as Partner and Managing Director for the MMGY Wagstaff brand. She will work with the MMGY Global senior management team to grow the agency’s capabilities and extend its services across other areas of the company.
“We are thrilled to be joining MMGY Global to help our business progress to the next level,” said Mary Wagstaff, President of Wagstaff Media & Marketing. “We’re bringing a broader set of tools to our talented teams and offering our clients the benefits of a fully integrated marketing firm, including expanded creative and production resources, research and insights, as well as more global services.”
MMGY Wagstaff and MMGY Global’s existing North American PR, social and experiential brand, MMGY NJF, will continue to operate separately. Both will work with MMGY Global’s European PR brand, MMGY Grifco, to connect clients to international markets.
Wagstaff Media & Marketing is the tenth acquisition by MMGY Global since private equity firm Peninsula Capital Partners made a significant equity investment in the company in February 2016. The investment further strengthens the company’s aggressive acquisition strategy, which includes global expansion and its commitment to integration across all travel marketing channels.
MMGY Global was advised on the transaction by Armanino, LLP on financial matters and by Foley & Lardner, LLP on legal matters. Wagstaff was advised on the transaction by Greenberg Traurig LLP on legal matters and by tax advisors Lederman Zeidler Gray & Co.
Vicky is the co-founder of TravelDailyNews Media Network where she is the Editor-in Chief. She is also responsible for the daily operation and the financial policy. She holds a Bachelor's degree in Tourism Business Administration from the Technical University of Athens and a Master in Business Administration (MBA) from the University of Wales.
She has many years of both academic and industrial experience within the travel industry. She has written/edited numerous articles in various tourism magazines.
