IVE Group has completed its acquisition of creative agency Daily Press, finalising a deal valued at $35m, which will see IVE take complete ownership of the agency.
The agency is expected to relocate to IVE’s Sydney head office in late 2026. It currently employs 64 people across Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane.
Founded in 1999 by chief executive Wayne Knight, Daily Press is a creative agency specialising in digital, social media, performance marketing, branding, web and app development, alongside video content production. The agency’s c;ient roster includes Merivale, The Star Casino, Tabcorp, Westfield Group and Diageo.
Knight remains within the business following completion; he will join IVE in an unspecified role, according to an official announcement.
“The acquisition of Daily Press is a significant step in advancing the Group’s ‘Now to 2030’ strategy and positioning creativity as a core driver of long-term growth,” IVE’s managing director Matt Aitken said in a statement to the ASX.
IVE’s Now to 2030 strategy is a long-term a growth plan focused on expanding earnings through organic growth and acquisitions.
“Daily Press brings highly complementary digital, social, performance and technology capabilities that enhance our ability to deliver integrated, omni-channel solutions connecting strategy, creativity and execution in a way traditional agency models cannot,” Aitken added.
IVE said it expects to save around $1 million a year by bringing Daily Press’ outsourced print, distribution and activation work in-house, while also expecting extra revenue from selling its own wider creative and production services to Daily Press clients.
IVE expects the acquisition to add around $23m in annual revenue and $5.5m in EBITDA (Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation, and Amortisation).
The purchase price comprises $25m paid in cash at completion, up to $8m in deferred consideration subject to agreed performance hurdles over the first and second 12-month periods post-completion.
It is also required to be up to a further $2m in deferred consideration, up to $1m per earn-out period, based on performance against stretch targets.
The acquisition follows IVE’s smaller purchase last year of creative agency Elastic Studios, which cost $1.7 million in cash, rising to $2.7 million if earnout targets are met. That deal added 40 people to IVE’s creative and content teams.
