ST. LOUIS—Maritz Research today announced it is acquiring the consultancy company Imagin AG, a German-based marketing research company specializing in stakeholder-feedback management. With the purchase of the Wiesbaden-based Imagin and its subsidiary, Customer Care International GmbH (CCI), an international call center based in Lörrach specializing in customer feedback, Maritz Research is underlining its European market leadership in the field of customer experience measurement (CEM). While Maritz Research’s European offices experienced a 25 percent growth rate in 2010 – far beyond the industry average – and are projected to experience 30 percent organic growth within the current fiscal year, the acquisition of Imagin further accelerates the company’s growth rate. Imagin’s 75 employees will join the Maritz Research team, which now will consist of more than 230 research professionals in Europe and 900 globally.
“With the acquisitions of evolve24 in 2010 and Imagin today, Maritz Research is continuing its strategy to invest in global capabilities and provide leading-edge customer experience measurement solutions to our clients,” said Michael Brereton, president of Maritz Research.
“We are delighted that Imagin is now a part of Maritz Research,” says Stephan Thun, executive vice president and managing director of Maritz Research’s Europe offices. “With this pooled expertise, we will acquire additional clients in new industries and strengthen our existing customer relationships with new research solutions. With its leading-edge business solutions for employee and customer satisfaction research, Imagin perfectly complements our leadership position in an increasingly important market.”
Imagin Chairmen Professor Klaus W. Bochmann and Thomas Ewen will continue on with the company, which will retain its name “Imagin, a Maritz Research company.”
“Imagin has experienced successful growth over the years, so this affiliation with Maritz Research is a logical next step for our employees and our company. Both companies have the same focus and the same future vision,” said Bochmann.
“Our combined companies create a new market leader, an innovative, global force in the stakeholder-feedback management sector that will provide opportunities to our employees and profits to our clients,” added Ewen.
With this acquisition, Maritz Research Europe will focus on further developing innovative IT systems, the integration of multiple data sources including social media, as well as its in-depth analysis and consultation expertise.
About Imagin
Imagin is one of the leading German consultancy companies for customer feedback management and CRM solutions. Its main focal points are the establishment of customer orientation within company strategies, increasing customer loyalty and satisfaction, as well as the customer value. Imagin’s client list includes a large number of DAX30 and MDAX companies. The company’s headquarters are in Wiesbaden.
Find out more at: www.imaginag.de
About Maritz Research
As one of the world’s largest marketing research firms, Maritz Research, a unit of Maritz, helps many of today’s most successful companies improve performance through a deep understanding of their customers, employees and channel partners. Founded in 1973, it offers a range of strategic and tactical solutions concentrating primarily in the automotive, financial services, hospitality, technology, telecommunications, and retail industries. The company has achieved ISO 20252 registration, the international symbol of quality. It is a member of CASRO, ESOMAR, MRA, and is the official sponsor of the American Marketing Association.
For more information, visit www.MaritzResearch.com and www.evolve24.com, or contact us at 1-877-4MARITZ.