Farner buys Yjoo

With this step, the owner-managed consulting firm Farner Consulting is expanding its offering to include brand communications and strengthening its creative department. The additional locations in St. Gallen, which will be further expanded under the "Yjoo by Farner" brand, and in Lugano underscore the importance of regional proximity in communications.

At the same time, the existing Farner services Public Relations, Public Affairs, Digital, Social & Community Marketing, Change and Advertising will be strategically complemented. The merger creates the first truly integrated communications consulting company in Switzerland.

"Driven by convergence and media change, Switzerland's most complete agency in terms of competencies, industries, content, regions and methodology is emerging. Whether PR, campaigning, advertising or digital marketing, whether for consumer, corporate, political, health or financial topics, clients won't find comparable communications power anywhere," Farner writes in a statement.

Martin Zahner, previously majority shareholder and Chairman of the Board of Directors of Ykpp, becomes Vice Chairman of the Board and Partner of Farner Consulting; he will focus on strategic business development and key client relationships. Nina Krucker, who previously worked for Yjoo, will become a partner of Farner and a member of the management team for the new Brand Communications unit at the Zurich office. Samuel Güttinger heads the St. Gallen office and joins the Farner management team. Marco Werder will represent Farner Consulting in Ticino.

In just six years, Yjoo has established itself at the top of the Swiss agency scene with creative, content and stakeholder campaigns for major clients such as Coop, McDonald's, Nespresso, SBB, IWC, the Swiss Federal Office of Public Health, OpenAir St. Gallen and a broad client portfolio in the public and SME sectors. Yjoo's clients will continue to be served by their existing consultants and will now benefit from an even broader range of services - from research, strategy and consulting to creation and the digital know-how of the Farner Consulting agency.

Farner Consulting has already consistently positioned itself more broadly in recent years, and the integration of Yjoo is the next logical step along this path. The areas of advertising and creation, digital, social & community marketing and change communications have been greatly expanded. So has the Public Affairs/Governmental Relations division. The agency has grown by more than 40 percent in recent years, with more than 100 employees before the merger. Farner Consulting now employs almost 140 people, generates annual net fee revenues of around CHF 25 million and now has offices in Zurich, Bern, Lausanne, Geneva, St. Gallen and Lugano.

Roman Geiser, majority shareholder and CEO of Farner Consulting, comments: "Farner has always been excellently positioned in corporate communications and public affairs. What we have lacked is a strong brand and consumer/lifestyle team. With the merger, our competencies in this area will grow significantly. In addition, we can also strengthen our creative department." Geiser added: "Together with the creative department and our digital unit, communication for brands will play an even more important role in Farner's offering. The new site in St. Gallen Yjoo by Farner also complements us."

Martin Zahner, majority shareholder of Yjoo, explains: "The new constellation is forward-looking. Farner is not a PR, advertising, digital or whatever agency, but the most convergent agency with locations all over Switzerland. I'm happy for our team and for myself that the Yjoo success story will continue at Farner. We maintain a congruent understanding of what constitutes effective communication and how the media shift is driving greater demand from clients for brand understanding and digital and creative expertise."

Photo: Samuel Güttinger, Nina Krucker, Martin Zahner and Roman Geiser (from left)