Accenture Song Lands Whalar in a Big Bet on Creator Marketing

Accenture has agreed to buy Whalar, the New York-based creator and social agency, and fold it into Accenture Song, its digital marketing arm. The deal was announced on 8 June 2026. Price was not disclosed. Accenture's newsroom has since noted that it closed on 31 July.

The headline is a consultancy buying an influencer shop. The more interesting story is how Whalar's founders structured it.

The agency sells, the group stays

Whalar was launched in 2016 by Neil Waller and James Street. Over a decade it grew into something bigger: Whalar Group, which also houses Sixteenth, Foam, Moby Ventures, The Lighthouse and The Business of Creativity.

Accenture is only buying the agency. The rest of the group stays put under Waller and Street, and signs a three-year strategic partnership with Accenture Song covering creator economy innovation and access to the wider group.

So the founders crystallise value in the services business while keeping the ventures, the creator-side assets and a commercial pipe into one of the biggest marketing buyers on the planet. That is a smart way to sell. "We're incredibly proud of what the team has built over the past decade," the pair said, per Consulting.us.

What Accenture gets

Whalar brings around 170 people across the US, UK, Ireland, Germany and Spain. It has run more than $600 million of creator campaigns, covering tens of thousands of collaborations in over 40 countries and 15 languages. It also carries a heavy awards shelf, including Adweek's Creator Agency of the Year and Campaign UK's Agency of the Year.

Whalar co-CEOs Emma Harman and Jo Cronk keep their jobs and move across with the team. "Joining Accenture Song allows us to build on our unrivaled foundation," they said in the announcement.

Song, led by CEO Ndidi Oteh, wants creators wired into the whole customer experience rather than bolted on for one-off campaigns. Whalar's work sits alongside Song's social commerce, live insights and AI-driven discovery capabilities. This is also a pattern, not a one-off. Song bought influencer agency Superdigital in 2025 and Unlimited in 2024.

Why it matters

Creator marketing has moved from experiment to line item. The IAB expects US creator ad spend to reach $43.9 billion in 2026, and the big consultancies want a share of the budget that comes with it.

For founders, two lessons stand out. Specialist creator agencies with proper scale, measurement and a reputation are now strategic assets for the largest buyers. And you do not have to sell everything. Separating the agency from the IP and ventures around it can give you a clean exit and a second act at the same time.

Building something a strategic buyer would want? Start the conversation with Agencies.co.

Sources: Accenture Newsroom, Campaign, MediaPost, Consulting.us