Andrew Apfelberg, Corporate Partner, was quoted in Mergers & Acquisitions discussing the recent acquisition of Underdog Venture Team, a marketing agency, by NewSpring Holdings.

There are risks inherent in positioning an upstart business to compete against established heavyweights of the talent agency industry like Creative Artists Agency LLC or Wasserman Media Group, but the upside can be highly profitable for Underdog, says Andrew Apfelberg, a Los Angeles-based attorney at Greenberg Glusker.

“That’s going to require a lot of capital,” Apfelberg says. “But to go into areas that are still highly respected, desirable, interesting, and marketable, but maybe haven’t received as much attention, is absolutely brilliant from a business strategy standpoint.”

NewSpring and Underdog’s long-term success will rest in their ability to expand their reach, iterate and grow their business model to reach profitability, while staving off competitors eager to capture some of their market share, Apfelberg says.

“People want to be associated with businesses that are hot, and are market disruptors,” Apfelberg says. “Not everybody has $1 million for a 30-second Super Bowl ad, but there are way more companies who might have $10,000 to sponsor an athlete at the World Cup.”

Resources

• Mergers & Acquisitions