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Tokyo—January 29, 2018—Hakuhodo Inc. (Minato-ku, Tokyo; Masayuki Mizushima, President & CEO), Japan’s second largest advertising company, is pleased to announce its acquisition of a majority of the shares of Ho Chi Minh City-based Square Communications Joint Stock Company (“Square Communications”), a leading integrated marketing communications agency group operating in Vietnam and Myanmar.

Launched by four co-founders in 2005, Square Communications today offers high-quality integrated marketing communications (IMC) services in such fields as event implementation and production, exhibitions, interior design, engagement marketing, direct marketing, PR/communications, and digital communications. Respected by clients for the excellence of its services, it is a growing enterprise with seven specialized subsidiaries.

Integrated marketing is expected to be a growth field in the rapidly expanding Vietnamese market. The acquisition of Square Communications better positions Hakuhodo Group to cater to clients in the integrated marketing field throughout the Indochina region, as we redouble our efforts to improve the quality of our services both to Japanese clients and to global and local customers. Specialized staff will be sent to Square Communications from our subsidiary Hakuhodo Product’s, which offers integrated production services in Japan, to share knowledge, expertise, and technology in various fields with the aim of strengthening the Group’s existing business and expanding its operations throughout the Indochina region.

Vo Thanh Trung, Chairman of Square Communications, commented thus on joining the Hakuhodo Group: “With the decision to become a member of Hakuhodo Inc., after nearly two years of investigating and discussing, we have finally chosen a strategic partner who always respects and believes in the development direction initiated by the founders of Square Communications. We will actively harness the powerful competence in data management and innovative technologies of Hakuhodo Inc.’s headquarters in Tokyo to develop our capabilities in order to provide suitable and effective solutions to clients’ new challenges in Vietnam and other Indochina countries.”

The Hakuhodo Group will continue to expand its marketing services network across Asia in order to provide sei-katsu-sha*1 insight-based marketing solutions to Japanese, local, and global companies in whatever country they operate.

^*1 Sei-katsu-sha are more than simply consumers, just as people’s lives and lifestyles include more than just shopping. Hakuhodo introduced this term in the 1980s to emphasize its commitment to a comprehensive, 360-degree perspective on consumers’ lives.

Outline of Square Communications

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