This acquisition expands the breadth and depth of Helio’s coverage in the EU. It includes Dods Germany and Dods France to add to the group’s list of national monitoring products, alongside DeHavilland Scotland, DeHavilland Cymru and DeHavilland Northern Ireland – all recently added through the acquisition of devolved nation specialist, NewsDirect.
Following the acquisition, a further 300 clients will join the group, which will now serve over 1,000 clients across the European public affairs market. This enhances its position as the leading provider of political intelligence through its existing DeHavilland and Forefront brands.
Helio’s clients will all benefit from its major product transformation project, set to become the new standard in political intelligence. This combines cutting edge technology with expert human insight and over 25 years of political intelligence to create a leading platform that will advance the public affairs industry.
Andrew Himsley, Group CEO, said: “This acquisition combines the two founding organisations of modern political monitoring in Brussels, both strong believers in the importance of human-led services. The group’s client base of over a thousand organisations will benefit from access to the most experienced analysts, the most advanced technology and the greatest political insight available to public affairs professionals in Europe.”
Igor Kostadinovski, Head of Dods EU Political Intelligence, said: “Together we will provide an unrivalled service for public affairs professionals in Brussels, which will only be enhanced by the product improvements the group has been investing in. Having seen the ambitious plans the group has set out, I’m looking forward to now being part of the organisation that is leading the future of the sector.”
David Torbet, Partner at Bowmark Capital, said: “We are delighted to support Helio’s strategic expansion across Europe. Acquiring Dods EU reflects the company’s strong growth ambitions and positions it to meet the growing demand for comprehensive political intelligence solutions.”
