Lord added that when it comes to tech, Horizon Global’s “open ecosystem” approach lets it plug in tools from Amazon, Google, and Adobe: “An open ecosystem spurs innovation. A closed ecosystem stifles it,” he said.

Most importantly, the new structure gives clients working across geographies “one throat to choke,” as Lord put it. He pointed to airlines and footwear as areas where Horizon Global sees near-term opportunity—though the agency declined to confirm whether it’s in any active pitches.

A new terrain

Horizon Global reflects the reality facing many midsize networks that need more scale to compete for global media accounts. With Horizon’s U.S. heft and Havas’ international reach, both are betting that joining forces can win them a seat at bigger tables in a market with fewer options. Mears said 2025 has been slow for new business, but that its looking like “a very busy fall and a busy Q1 2026.”

Industry analyst Brian Wieser, however, said the JV only opens doors to a narrow set of reviews that require both U.S. heft and a small global footprint.

“There’s going to be some subset of marketers who are primarily U.S.-based, who are large and have relatively small global operations, and only want to appoint one agency,” he said. “In that narrow set of circumstances, they might get into a pitch that they would have otherwise [not].”

Asked if Horizon Global narrows the gap with mega-holdcos, Wieser was blunt: “Not at all. If the global part were big, you’re not considering Horizon or Havas in the first place.”

While both companies see Horizon Global as a long-term play, Lord said there’s room to evolve the offer, including potential acquisitions down the line.

“Because of the way that we’ve set this joint venture up, it gives us a lot of flexibility for what will come in the future,” he said. “Are there assets that we want to pull into this JV?”

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