In the advertising business, marriages between independent shops and holding companies are often described as permanent unions, right up until they aren't.
Gian Carlo Lanfranco and Rolando Cordova, the founders of the creative agency L&C, have repurchased Serviceplan's stake in their firm, returning the shop to full founder ownership. The transaction reverses what had been a partnership with the German agency network, which ranks among the larger independent holding companies in Europe.
The terms of the buyback were not disclosed, which is the industry's traditional way of saying that at least one party would prefer you not do the math.
Mr. Lanfranco and Mr. Cordova started L&C as an independent creative shop, and the return to that structure suggests a familiar arc: founders who sell a stake to gain resources and scale, only to discover that independence has its own particular value. (Or perhaps they simply missed being the only names on the door.)
Serviceplan, which has assembled a network of agencies across Europe and beyond, has generally positioned itself as a more founder-friendly alternative to the giant holding companies like WPP or Publicis Groupe. Whether L&C's exit reflects a change in that dynamic, or simply the usual restlessness of creative entrepreneurs, neither party has said.
The move comes at a moment when the definition of independence in advertising has become notably elastic. Agencies routinely describe themselves as independent while carrying minority investors, majority investors, or investors who prefer not to be described at all.
For Mr. Lanfranco and Mr. Cordova, the transaction is straightforward enough: they owned the agency, then they partially didn't, and now they do again. The advertising industry has always had a fondness for second acts, particularly when the founders are writing the check.
Original story published in adage.com: "Dollar Tree hires Tombras for first national campaign - Ad Age"