Motion Makes Seventh Acquisition With Chicago B2B Shop LKH&S

Seven deals in and Motion shows no sign of slowing down. The Chicago agency founded by Kim Eberl has bought LKH&S, a local advertising shop with more than three decades behind it and a name built in B2B.

It is Motion's second purchase of 2026. In January it picked up AKA Media, a Chicago video production company. Now it is adding a specialist creative agency to the stack.

Who is LKH&S?

LKH&S opened in 1992 and has spent the years since working mainly for business-to-business brands. Its roster includes Hyundai, EmployCo, EvAI and Toggler. The work runs from brand strategy and research through to campaigns across digital, print, social and direct.

Neither side has disclosed terms, and nothing has been said publicly about what roles the LKH&S team will take inside Motion.

Why it matters

Motion already has form in B2B. B2B Marketing magazine has named it among the top agencies in the US for that work. Bolting on a shop that has lived in the category since the early nineties deepens the bench and brings fresh client relationships with it.

It is also a statement about where Eberl thinks the market is heading. Motion bills itself as the largest woman-owned marketing services agency in Chicago and is one of the city's biggest independents. Rather than sell to a holding company, it is doing the buying. Eberl told Reel Chicago she sees "a tremendous appetite for client-focused, independent, midsized agencies."

The property plans back that up. Motion is taking roughly 21% more space at its Reid Murdoch Building headquarters, bringing the floor to nearly 24,000 square feet, with 11 new private offices among the additions. You don't sign for extra desks unless you expect to fill them.

And it kept going. Since this deal, Motion has added Cincinnati PR firm Vehr Communications, pushing its footprint beyond Chicago and across the Midwest.

For founders of established B2B shops, the lesson is simple. Independent consolidators are hunting for exactly this profile: long client tenure, a clear specialism and a team that fits a bigger platform.

Running a specialist agency and wondering who might come knocking? Start the conversation at Agencies.co.

Sources: Reel Chicago, O'Dwyer's, CB Insights, Reel Chicago (Vehr)