Bcom3 Forms ‘Pangea’ – A Multicultural Marketing Group.

Bcom3 Group, Inc. established Pangea. a collaborative multicultural communications group that offers clients a holistic view across the major ethnic and diverse communities in the U.S., as well as seamless development and integration of their ethnic marketing communications. Bcom3 is also forming Tapestry, a full-service media communications company targeting multicultural consumers, under the Starcom MediaVest Group (SMG) umbrella.

Aligning under the Pangea umbrella are several full-service agencies: San Antonio-based Bromley Communications and Chicago-based Lapiz (both of which specialize in the Hispanic market) and New York-based Vigilante (which targets urban and African-American consumers).

Pangea is also forming an exclusive, non-equity affiliation with New-A Inc., a New York-based agency group that targets Asian-Americans. Its units include: New York-based Admerasia, Toronto-based Admerasia Canada, and L.A.- based AAAZA, Inc. (all full-service agencies), Cyverasia (interactive), and aLanguageBank (translation services).

Another company joining the Pangea partnership is Double Platinum LLC, a New York-based boutique agency formed earlier this year that specializes in the development of strategic marketing communications targeting the estimated 17-22.5 million gay and lesbian consumers in the U.S. Bcom3 is acquiring 20 percent equity in Double Platinum.

“Bcom3 is the first leading marketing communications holding company to invest in a gay & lesbian agency,” said Double Platinum account director Stephanie Blackwood, who along with creative director Arthur Korant founded the agency. “Previously, multicultural basically meant multi-ethnic. Pangea is re-defining the industry paradigm.”

Pangea will also offer ethnic/culturally diverse public relations, promotions, relationship marketing, and interactive divisions. As part of this restructuring, LApiz and Vigilante are being spun off from Chicago-based Leo Burnett USA.

In addition to offering clients a state-of-the-art, multicultural media resource in Tapestry, Bcom3 and Pangea will provide such specialty marketing resources as promotions and relationship marketing. These capabilities will be spun out of Bromley and re-branded Pangea Promotions and Pangea Relationship Marketing. They will be available to all Pangea agencies and roster and non-roster clients.

Similarly, the joint venture with public relations firm Manning Selvage & Lee that was established in 1999 to form Bromley/MS&L, will now expand into a multicultural resource for all Pangea units. It will be re-branded Pangea PR.