WPP, Sam Balsara and Lara Balsara Vajifdar announced that WPP has purchased the remaining 26% stake in MediaCom Communications Private Limited in India from  Sam Balsara and Lara Balsara Vajifdar. 

Following WPP’s decision to merge Essence and MediaCom globally, Sam Balsara and Lara Balsara Vajifdar entered into a discussion with WPP agreeing to exit MediaCom in the interest of MediaCom clients to enable the merger.

The initial agreement between WPP and  Sam Balsara and his family dated back to 2008, under which Balsara family owned 51%. In 2017 Balsara family sold 25% to WPP. 

Sam Balsara said: “This innovative partnership we invested in nearly 15 years ago has been a great success for all parties. It has established MediaCom in India as a fast-growing and highly respected agency by advertisers.”

Nick Lawson, Global CEO, MediaCom, said: “It has been a pleasure working with Sam Balsara and Lara Balsara as we grew this successful business in India. We will build on that legacy to deliver the agency model our clients want for the future - founded on brilliant strategy and brand-building capabilities, with pioneering digital expertise running throughout.”

On 26 April 2022, WPP announced that global agencies MediaCom and Essence would merge to form EssenceMediacom.