Press Release
Spectrum Science Acquires CrowdPharm and Hot Iron Health
Latest acquisition features disruptive model designed to solve for gaps in traditional advertising offerings and help accelerate innovation for pharma and life science clients navigating today’s modern marketplace
WASHINGTON, DC and KANSAS CITY, MO (November 20, 2023) – Spectrum, an independent, integrated healthcare and scientific marketing, communications, media and strategic services firm focused on the pharmaceutical, biotech and broader life science industries, today announced the acquisition of CrowdPharm, a full-service healthcare advertising company and its partner consultancy, Hot Iron Health. Details of the transaction were not disclosed.
The acquisition solidifies Spectrum’s growing work in promotional engagement and advertising, and formally establishes Spectrum’s strategic advertising and consulting pillar, leveraging CrowdPharm’s disruptive delivery model to help clients meet today’s marketing challenges with more impact and efficiency. The acquisition also brings HIH’s strategic advisory and consulting services to bear for clients navigating a complex market. The advertising and consulting pillar will be led by Mike Myers, managing director and partner of CrowdPharm, who will serve as president and lead day-to-day operations.
“We are delighted to welcome the extraordinary CrowdPharm and HIH teams and their powerful, one-of-a-kind model to sourcing talent and servicing clients in a bespoke fashion, at incredible pace and value,” said Jonathan Wilson, CEO of Spectrum. “In today’s evolving market, health and life science clients can’t afford to stick with the status quo. They need strategic and creative solutions that are fast, effective and resourceful. With Spectrum’s newly established advertising and consulting pillar, built on the backbone of our strategy, innovation and creative capabilities, and now fueled by CrowdPharm and Hot Iron Health’s pioneering approach, we can bring the transformational solutions our clients need to break through in today’s market.”
This acquisition enhances Spectrum’s current capabilities in several critical ways, including expanding the firm’s existing client base, as well as adding key advertising and consulting talent to its roster.
“We are incredibly proud of our team and the company that we’ve been able to build. Since day one, we’ve been focused on offering an evolved approach to healthcare marketing that enables clients and their brands real-time access to the abundance of strategic and creative talent around the world,” says Mike Myers, managing director and partner of CrowdPharm.
“Critical to our success has been a commitment to both innovation and evolution, in service of our people and for our clients. Joining the Spectrum team means that we can continue to provide game-changing, strategic advertising and consulting solutions on an even larger scale, to more clients around the world.”
This is the first acquisition Spectrum has completed since its strategic partnership with Knox Lane earlier this year. The addition of CrowdPharm and HIH’s capabilities strengthens Spectrum’s fully integrated suite of strategic services, including marketing, communications, medical communications, clinical trial recruitment and retention, and consulting. The acquisition also provides access to more than 8,300 members of the CrowdPharm and HIH global talent network.
About Spectrum
Spectrum is an integrated marketing, communications and media firm like no other. An independent, full-service organization with end-to-end capabilities, Spectrum’s team are experts in healthcare and science—focused on strategic engagements that leverage human-centered insights, motivating creative, innovative storytelling and technology to reach audiences where they are with the content they need and want. In 2023, Spectrum was named North America Healthcare Agency of the Year by PRovoke Media and won the Heart Award from Med Ad News for its commitment to philanthropy and social causes. Spectrum offers global reach as the US partner and chair of Global Health Marketing & Communications (GHMC). For more information on how Spectrum goes Beyond the Science Quo, visit www.spectrumscience.com, or follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter and Instagram.
About CrowdPharm and Hot Iron Health
CrowdPharm, a Spectrum Science company, is a full-service advertising agency led by industry veterans and fueled by the largest network of global talent anywhere. Innovative technology enables the agency to deliver an abundance of original strategic and creative solutions and provide a flexible force of talent with experience that spans startups, orphan products, blockbusters, and primary care. With 8,300+ members across 127+ countries, the agency is ready to develop compelling brand communications in healthcare, medical, and pharmaceutical marketing for pharmaceutical and biopharma companies. Learn more at www.crowdpharm.com.
Hot Iron Health, a Spectrum Science company, is a healthcare strategy firm that delivers world-class thinking. Whether designing a market-shaping strategy or developing in-depth portfolio optimization plans, Hot Iron Health’s team leverages financial modeling and diverse data sets to deliver the highest level of client-focused—and ultimately patient-focused—planning and thinking across the entire commercial life cycle of a brand. Learn more at www.hotironhealth.com.
About Knox Lane
Based in San Francisco, Knox Lane is a growth-oriented investment firm comprised of a team of accomplished investors and operators with a shared work history and a strong track record of partnering with leading companies to accelerate transformational growth. Knox Lane seeks to provide support across a number of business components, including human capital, brand management, end-to-end digital transformation, sourcing, supply chain and logistics, strategic acquisitions and business development. For more information, please visit www.knoxlane.com.