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Hakuhodo DY Holdings Inc. (Minato-ku, Tokyo; Hirokazu Toda, President & CEO) announces that its strategic operating unit kyu will invest in IDEO LP (“IDEO”), a world-renowned design and innovation firm based in the United States, to have a 30% equity stake in the company. We have also reached an agreement with IDEO’s shareholders to have an option to purchase a majority interest at a future date.

Originally founded in California’s celebrated Silicon Valley, IDEO today has 10 global offices in North America, Europe and Asia. It offers design consulting in a broad range of fields, including products, services, digital experiences, healthcare, education and issues of public interest. Named in Businessweek magazine’s list of the most innovative companies in the world in three consecutive years, IDEO has a formidable reputation worldwide.

The Hakuhodo DY Group has put forward in our current Medium Term Business Plan the acquisition of and investment in specialist creative service companies that offer advanced brand building methods and solutions as a key driver of growth*. The investment in IDEO is part of this endeavor and through its superlative creativity and innovation we expect IDEO to have great synergy with the current members of kyu – SY Partners, Red Peak Group, Digital Kitchen and Sid Lee.

* Hakuhodo DY Holdings’ three Key Drivers:
(1) Strengthening of sei-katsu-sha driven marketing response capabilities, (2) strengthening of business structures in emerging countries, particularly Asia, (3) continuous enhancement of specialization and innovation

The Hakuhodo DY Group, through kyu, will continue to enhance specialization and innovation within the Group in order to realize our basic medium-term strategies. These are to be among the world’s leading creative service groups; to be our clients’most important brand building partner; and to create new markets and movements to continuously invigorate society and sei-katsu-sha through our new, advanced creative solutions.

IDEO will also contribute to the growth of the Group’s international operations going forward, although the impact of the investment in IDEO on consolidated performance in the year ending March 31, 2016 will not be material.

■ About IDEO
IDEO is an award winning global design and innovation company. It creates positive impact through design by taking a human-centered approach to helping organizations in the public and private sectors innovate, grow, and bring to market new ideas. IDEO has offices in New York, Boston, San Francisco, Palo Alto, Chicago, London, Munich, Shanghai, Singapore and Tokyo.

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