Dentsu Aegis Network acquires UI/UX design agency Fractal

Dentsu Aegis Network has announced the acquisition of Fractal Ink Design Studio, a leading experiential design studio in India, which will join the network’s award-winning digital agency – Isobar, and be rebranded as ‘Fractal Ink Design Studio - Linked By Isobar’. The acquisition will add significant scale to the agency’s expertise in mobility and user experience, the most in-demand disciplines in the market. In addition, it will bring together a team of 1,000 digital experts, one of the largest in India, including the combined Isobar team and the existing network digital brands iProspect, WATConsult and Dentsu Webchutney. 

Established in 2010, Fractal specialises in user experience and user interface design (UI/UX) and digital design strategy services for major clients including Aditya Birla Group, Raymond, Idea group, MetLife, Times Network and Axis Bank. It is amongst the top three largest design studios in India, boasting 65 digital experts operating from Mumbai and Bangalore. 

Recently, Fractal was awarded the title of ‘India’s Best UI/UX Design Studio’ by POOL, one of India’s leading design magazines. Its innovative design work has also been recognised by CII Awards, having won various awards in 2014 and 2015, including the Interaction Design – Consumer, Home and Personal in the Internet of Things category. 

Tanay Kumar, CEO, Co-founder and Creative Director of Fractal, will join the Dentsu Aegis leadership team in India and will report to Ashish Bhasin, Chairman and CEO of Dentsu Aegis Network South Asia. Co-founders Geeta Suthar, Hemant Suthar and Priyanka Agrawal will also continue in their roles as part of the management team. 

Ashish Bhasin, Chairman and CEO of Dentsu Aegis Network South Asia, said, “Fractal is the leading digital design studio in the country that provides not only the mobility and UI/UX design capability, but also has an ideal combination of technology and creative services. Given the impending explosion of Internet of Things, wearables and mobile, this unique skill set will add to the group’s status of being digitally ahead in India.” 

“Today, Dentsu Aegis Network’s digital share in India is three times that of the market average and this will help us continue on our journey of being the leading digital group as well as bring us closer to our mission of being the second largest agency group in India by end 2017, overturning – for the first time – the existing ranking which has historically been in place for over 80 years in India,” Bhasin added. 

Jean Lin, Isobar Global CEO, said, “To deliver immersive Brand Commerce experiences that close the gap between brand inspiration and transaction, we need passionate talent with strong in-market design capabilities. Fractal is a highly reputable digital design studio in India and having them on board further strengthens our local mobile and experience design capability. We are very excited to welcome the Fractal team on board as part of the Isobar global family.” 

Tanay Kumar remarked, “We have come a long way in the last 6 years in establishing ourselves as leaders in the digital design and strategy space. Dentsu Aegis Network is the fastest growing group in the country and has demonstrated a strong momentum not just in terms of growth, but also in their culture and values. Its strong presence around the globe as well as their shared vision towards the digital and connected world will allow us to tap into latest industry best practices and tools as well as scale our operations geographically.”