Shares in marketing firm St Ives rose above five per cent after the company announced the acquisition of Amaze from Hasgrove.

Amaze, a digital marketing agency based in London, has about 200 employees and has clients across a range of sectors including automotive and retail.

St Ives said the acquisition would strengthen its offering to new and existing clients. The firm has agreed to purchase all of the issued share capital of Amaze, on a cash and debt free basis, for £15.3m in cash.

A further consideration of up to £9.0m may be payable depending on incremental financial performance this year.

The acquisition is subject to the approval of Hasgrove's shareholders.

"The acquisition of Amaze creates the foundation for an additional major pillar of our marketing services strategy," said St Ives Chief Executive officer Patrick Martell.

"We have strong positions in data marketing, research and consultancy services, field marketing, and now digital solutions.

"Further acquisitions will be focussed on building out these four pillars to further strengthen our integrated marketing services offering."

RD

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