Rise Interactive, a Chicago-based digital marketing agency, has been acquired by Quad/Graphics, a 48-year-old publicly traded Wisconsin marketing company.
Quad, which was a previous investor in Rise, announced that it has acquired a majority ownership stake in the company. It had a non-controlling stake in Rise since July 2016, when it invested $12.3 million in the Chicago company. The investment was the first and only outside funding for Rise since it was founded in 2004.
Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Based in Sussex and founded in 1971, Quad specializes in printing and marketing services. The acquisition will help Quad---known for doing early printing work for Newsweek in 1977---expand its digital offerings.
"Rise specializes in digital media, analytics and customer experience, and through our partnership we are advancing data-driven marketing through the delivery of highly relevant, consistent messages – at scale – to consumers across digital and print channels," Joel Quadracci, chairman, president and CEO of Quad, said in a news release.
Rise, founded by Jon Morris, serves as a full-service digital marketing agency to clients like ULTA Beauty and Atkins Nutritionals. It has grown to over 200 employees.
“Our companies are strategically and culturally aligned, and we are confident in the value we are creating for all stakeholders through this expanded partnership,” Morris said in the news release.
Quad has more than 22,000 employees, and a market cap of $1.3 billion.
