Founded in 1995 by Trevor Yager, TrendyMinds emerged as a full-service marketing agency with a sharp focus on the healthcare, pharmaceutical, and tech industries. Distinguished by its audience-focused approach and comprehensive service offerings in film, marketing, and web, the agency established long-term relationships with major clients such as Salesforce, IU Health, and Lilly, leveraging its industry specialization to deliver impactful and meaningful experiences.

Inside the Enterprise: Who Is TrendyMinds?

TrendyMinds stands out because of their ability to create holistic marketing solutions across a wide spectrum of services including film, marketing, and web, coupled with their knack for fostering long-term relationships with large global brands. Their nimble methodology and comprehensive service offerings enable them to deliver life-changing work that genuinely improves people’s lives, marking them as a unique player in the field.

Founder’s Motive: The Why Behind the Sale

After 25 years of organically growing TrendyMinds without outside funding, Trevor sought a partner to provide the additional resources and support needed to accelerate the agency’s expansion beyond Indiana. His goal was to supercharge the agency’s growth while ensuring a significant cash consideration at closing and retaining equity in the purchasing entity to share in the future success.

Founder’s Vision: Criteria for the Perfect Acquisition Fit

Trevor envisioned a buyer with the right mix of experience, resources, and industry connections to elevate TrendyMinds to a global scale, enhancing its impact in improving lives through creative work. He aimed for a partner significantly larger than TrendyMinds, ideally a $100M+ agency or a private equity group with extensive holdings in healthcare, pharmaceutical, and tech industries, who would appreciate the agency’s culture and drive growth at scale.

Setting the Stage: Preparing TrendyMinds for Acquisition

TrendyMinds readied for acquisition with a strategic focus on expanding its robust service offerings and capitalizing on opportunities for growth. This included plans to venture into new regions, adopt advanced technologies like SaaS tools and machine learning, and scale service offerings to meet the evolving needs of their large enterprise clients.

Attracting Suitors: Strategic Marketing of TrendyMinds for Acquisition

Armed with a deep understanding of TrendyMinds’ unique value proposition, financials, and market potential, we crafted compelling marketing materials to showcase the agency’s strengths. By leveraging our vast network of strategic buyers, we positioned TrendyMinds attractively to potential partners, emphasizing its growth opportunities and solid client relationships.

Sealing the Deal: Perfect Matchmaking with the Ideal Buyer

Our search for the perfect buyer culminated in finding Contour Ridge, a diverse private equity manager aligned with TrendyMinds’ culture and growth aspirations. Contour Ridge stood out for its commitment to supporting founder-led businesses and its ability to provide the operational resources and capital necessary for TrendyMinds’ next growth phase.

Unlocking Synergies: Positive Impacts Post-Transaction

The partnership between TrendyMinds and Contour Ridge unlocked new growth avenues, providing the agency with the financial and strategic resources to scale its operations, enter new markets, and enhance its service offerings. This synergy promised to catalyze TrendyMinds’ growth, reinforcing its position in the market and expanding its impact on clients’ lives.

Finding a New Home: The Merge Difference

Merge’s unique approach to M&A, combining industry specialization with a personalized and efficient process, was instrumental in identifying and securing a buyer that matched all of Trevor’s criteria. This partnership not only met his financial and strategic objectives but also ensured that TrendyMinds found a new home where its culture, vision, and growth potential would be nurtured and celebrated.