MDC Partners Acquires Strategic Partnership Interest in Hunter Public Relations, Award-Winning Consumer Communications Firm

NEW YORK, Aug. 13, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- MDC Partners Inc. (NASDAQ: MDCA; TSX: MDZ.A) announced today that it has acquired a majority partnership interest in leading consumer public relations firm Hunter Public Relations. Founded in 1989 as a PR agency specializing in food and nutrition, Hunter PR is one of the most respected mid-size marketing communications firms in the country, with expertise in the food and beverage, wine and spirits, home and lifestyle, pet care, and health and beauty industries, and some of the most enduring client relationships in the business. Within the MDC family of agencies, Hunter PR, led by three partners, Grace Leong, Jon Lyon and Jason Winocour, joins a robust group of communications firms including Allison+Partners, Bryan Mills Iradesso, Exponent, HL Group, Kingsdale Shareholder Services, Kwittken, Luntz Global, Sloane & Company, and Veritas.    

"MDC is fortunate to have partnered with some of the most innovative, celebrated and effective consumer advertising and marketing firms in the world," said Miles S. Nadal, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of MDC Partners. "By welcoming Hunter PR, which has a heritage of driving exceptional PR results for some of today's most respected consumer brands, to our family of best-in-class consumer and corporate PR agencies, we are now even better equipped to deliver a broader array of holistic and transformational campaigns that will drive superior financial results for all of our clients. Hunter's scaled expertise in marketing communications, media relations, events, and social media, combined with the team's heritage of entrepreneurialism, make the team an ideal fit for MDC."

Named Best Consumer Agency by The Holmes Report's 2014 Sabre Awards, Hunter PR has grown into one of the most awarded agencies of its kind in the 25 years since its founding. In addition to decades-long client relationships with Tabasco Pepper Sauce, E&J Gallo Winery, Kraft Foods, and 3M, among others, Hunter PR has expanded its client roster to include other category leaders such as McNeil, Diageo, Post and Smithfield.  In doing so the firm has developed sophisticated in-house specialized services that meaningfully differentiate the firm from others in consumer public relations. Over the last several years, Hunter has launched expert resources in Hispanic marketing, Social & Digital Media, and Entertainment Marketing to provide total communications solutions to its existing clients and attract new clients to the agency. With 100 people located in New York, Seattle, San Francisco and Miami, the firm is also well-known for its work in Cause-Related marketing, Consumer Insights and Design.

"This is an extremely exciting time for Hunter PR, and with MDC as a partner, we are energized by the clear growth opportunities for our firm, our staff and our clients' businesses," said Managing Partner Grace Leong. "Having found a strategic partner who shares our culture, our vision for the future, our entrepreneurial drive, and above all our focus on client service, we're better positioned than ever before to deepen and strengthen the resources we bring to clients in new geographies and in focused areas of expertise."

About Hunter Public Relations

Hunter Public Relations is an award-winning consumer products public relations firm based in New York City. Beginning with research-driven consumer insights, Hunter PR executes strategic public relations programs that build equity, increase engagement and drive measurable business results for branded consumer products and services. The 100-person team employs a powerful blend of traditional publicity, social & digital media outreach, strategic partnerships and influencer marketing to reach the hearts, minds and spirits of target consumers.

About MDC Partners Inc.

MDC Partners is one of the world's largest Business Transformation Organizations that utilizes technology, marketing communications, data analytics, insights and strategic consulting solutions to drive meaningful returns on Marketing and Communications Investments for multinational clients in the United States, Canada, and worldwide.

MDC Partners' durable competitive advantage is to Empower the Most Talented Entrepreneurial Thought Leaders to Drive Business Success to new levels of Achievement, for both our Clients and our Shareholders, reinforcing MDC Partners' reputation as "The Place Where Great Talent Lives."

MDC Partners' Class A shares are publicly traded on NASDAQ under the symbol "MDCA" and on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol "MDZ.A".

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SOURCE MDC Partners Inc.