Why Ardmore Group Bought a London Luxury PR Shop

The ways to reach people keep multiplying. John Keane, chairman and CEO of Ardmore Group, thinks that makes one thing matter more than ever: access to the best people. In his words, “specialists not generalists.”

That conviction just took the integrated group, headquartered in Holywood outside Belfast, to London. Ardmore has acquired 100% of ModusBPCM, a communications agency founded in 1987 with roots in fashion and beauty. With the deal, it returns to its original name — Modus.

A group built one specialist at a time

Keane has been building this way for a while. In 2022, Ardmore bought Belfast ecommerce shop BFG Digital. A year later it launched Confluence Consulting, a policy advisory led by former Northern Ireland minister Simon Hamilton. In June, it took a minority stake in Dublin creative agency Bonfire.

Each piece keeps its name and its craft. Modus is the newest, and the first with a London postcode.

What Ardmore saw in Modus

Nearly four decades in, Modus works across fashion, beauty, wellness, hospitality, drinks, design, arts and culture, for brands from the high street to luxury. Keane knew quickly.

“As soon as we met the team at Modus we knew we had found something very special indeed,” he says. “Their deep knowledge of all major luxury categories, their track record in content creation, experiential and PR all stood out. That they share our values and ambitions was the icing.”

For Ardmore, which has kept a small London presence for a few years, the deal gives the group a real foothold in the city. For Modus, it opens the door to Ardmore’s advertising, performance marketing and consultancy teams.

The name goes, the friendship stays

The “BPCM” arrived in 2017, when Modus merged its London business with BPCM London, the UK arm of New York’s BPCM. Julian Vogel — who started out at 20, skipping accountancy lectures to work backstage at fashion shows — became CEO of the combined shop. The two agencies keep working together on shared clients across the UK and US.

Vogel frames this move the way he frames the agency itself. “Modus has always evolved ahead of the market, anticipating what clients need before they know it themselves,” he says.

A much bigger map

Ardmore is a partner and shareholder in Worldwide Partners, Inc., one of the largest networks of independent marketing and communications agencies. That puts like-minded shops in 60 countries within reach of Modus and its clients.

“Independent agencies working together, as Modus reaches towards 40 years in communications and begins its next chapter,” Vogel says.

New hands on the wheel

Strategic director Rosie Pierce becomes managing director and will work with Ardmore leadership on the agency’s growth and integration. “I know that what makes the agency special is its people, relationships and expertise,” Pierce says.

Vogel stays on as a consultant, giving clients and the team continuity. Agency Futures originated the deal and introduced the two businesses.

So that’s the why. Nearly 40 years in, Modus has its first name back — and a home in a group betting that specialists travel better together.

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Modus
Ardmore Group
Contact: info@ardmore.co.uk | +44 28 9042 5344