Cork-headquartered Granite announces ninth acquisition amid US expansion

Granite now hopes to achieve target revenues of $40m by 2027 

Conor Buckley, CEO of Granite Digital

Cork-headquartered digital agency Granite has acquired Creative Media, a Northern Ireland-founded marketing specialist, for an undisclosed amount.

As it continues on an ambitious expansion across North America, Granite said the latest acquisition of Creative Media will enable the company to target revenues of $40m by 2027. Granite said North America will account for $20m of company revenues, half of the overall total. 

The deal anchors an ambitious US growth strategy, following a 400% year-on-year increase in organic North American revenue over the last 12 months, the company said. 

Granite’s strategy for continued expansion is backed by $10m in growth capital from BGF, Ireland and the UK's most active growth capital investor.

Northern Ireland-founded Creative Media has built a significant client base across North America over the past 25 years, with its founder, Marcus Isherwood, joining Granite as chief revenue officer, working alongside Rob Carpenter, Granite's US-based chief commercial officer. 

Since its founding in May 2000, Creative Media has grown into a team of more than 40 specialists serving over 30 clients across the US and Canada.

Granite says the move positions them as "a strong independent alternative" to holding company agencies for US enterprises seeking digital transformation, performance marketing and AI-powered solutions.

"I've spent 25 years building client relationships in North America with a simple philosophy: every dollar spent on marketing has to deliver a measurable return," said Marcus Isherwood.

"That's exactly how Granite operates, but at enterprise scale and with technical depth I haven't seen in an independent agency. Joining forces with this team gives our clients something genuinely new in the market."

The deal will grow Granite's workforce to over 200 specialists across strategy, engineering, design, data and marketing.

The company serves major enterprise clients including Intel, Pepsi, Sysco, Iron Mountain, Concentrix, Aer Lingus, Tesco and Dalata Hotel Group. 

This will be the ninth acquisition Granite has made since 2020, and its most significant step into North America. 

Granite also welcomed the recent appointment of Joy Marcus as Non-Executive Chair, who has held executive roles at major organisations including Condé Nast, Time Warner and MTV Networks.

Conor Buckley, CEO of Granite added: "North America has always been central to our growth strategy. The Creative Media agreed acquisition, Marcus's appointment, and the team we're building in the US are all part of a deliberate plan to bring Granite's model to the world’s largest digital market. 

"We've proven this works in Europe and the Middle East, and we’re actively pursuing acquisitions in North America to deepen our capabilities and accelerate our growth."