LONDON — The U.K.–based global events, data and media platform Arc recently made inroads into the U.S. with the acquisition of Topsfield, Mass.–based HighQuest, which produces conferences and media products across the agribusiness sector.
Among HighQuest’s brands are Global AgInvesting, Women in Agribusiness, Unconventional Ag and the Ag Club. The Global AgInvesting summits are the world’s largest gatherings of agriculture investors and sector stakeholders, and the Women in Agribusiness summits are at the forefront of that niche. In addition to the flagship “GAI News,” “Women in Agribusiness Today” and other publications, the company also produces a variety of live events, webinars and industry research.
Related: Arc Adds Incisive Media to Its Portfolio
Founded to redefine business networking, Arc organizes more than 100 events a year and runs some of the top content platforms in agriculture, food, business sustainability and financial services. Arc is backed by investment funds managed by EagleTree Capital; this is its first investment in North America and fifth acquisition in the past year.
Related. Arc Consortium and EagleTree Capital Form Partnership
“It’s been an incredible 12 months,” Simon Foster, Arc Group CEO, said. “When we first started talking about the concept for Arc, it was key to me to be community-centric and platform-agnostic. We know networking has changed, and our vision for Arc was to be at the forefront of that change.”
Arc’s model is to create business community engagement “whenever, wherever and however.”
Foster said: “We sought out businesses and teams who shared our vision. To that end, we’ve created a strong core in the U.K., with Incisive Media and Agriconnect, and we’re building our platforms in Europe and the U.S., starting with Bridge2Food and HighQuest.”
Related. Arc Goes Plant-Based with its Bridge2Food Partnership
What’s ahead for Arc? “Over the next 12 months, our aim is to continue to grow and scale, with a particular focus on development in North America, where we are seeking more partners. We’ll also be looking at partnering and bringing together more regional centers of excellence; expanding and strengthening in our sectors: agriculture, food, sustainability and finance; and developing and enhancing best-in-class platforms. In short, we hope the next year of development for Arc grows the business, our teams and adds more value to our communities.”
Reach Simon Foster at (+44) 1772 -799500 or simon.foster@arc-network.com
