The largest Northern Ireland-based marketing and advertising group, Ardmore Advertising Group, has acquired a minority stake in the Dublin-based creative agency Bonfire for an undisclosed sum.
Bonfire was founded by Ian Doherty and Sean Hynes- a former president of IAPI- in 2005. Doherty retired from the agency in 2025, with Hynes assuming full equity control. Past and present clients of Bonfire include the likes of Johnson & Johnson, the Irish Pharmacy Union, Kia, Universal, Beacon Care Fertility, Kenvue, Tullamore Dew, Benecol and Folens.
For its part, Ardmore is Northern Ireland’s largest marketing communications group, offering creative, media, strategy, digital,experiential as well as public relations and public affairs services.
Headed up by John Keane, as CEO and chairman, and Miriam Moertl, the group’s managing director, it is part of Worldwide Partners Inc (WPI), the global network of independent agencies. Apart from its HQ in the picturesque village of Hollywood on the outskirts of Belfast, Ardmore has offices in Dublin, London and Manchester.
Clients of the Ardmore include the likes of Tourism Northern Ireland, Lidl, Dromona, Translink and Network Rail as well as a number of NI government departments and agencies like the Department of Infrastructure and the Department of Justice. In the run-up to the this year’s FIFA World Cup the agency also worked closely with Visit Pennsylvania on a campaign to inform fans about Philadelphia, one of the host cities.
Explaining Ardmore’s interest in Bonfire, John Keane, CEO said: “The dedication to award-winning, effective creative work, shown by the team at Bonfire over the years, was what drew us to them…the wonderful people they are is what brought the deal to life.”
“Everyone at Bonfire is really excited about the news, which allows us to keep the momentum going on our recent growth. A big factor in the decision process was the like-minded cultural fit on a human level. It’s always nice to work with nice people,” added Sean Hynes, Bonfire.
“John and I met about five years ago, and he always struck me as someone I could do business with. More importantly, it was clear that he was someone whose values were similar to mine. We bumped into each other at an industry event earlier in the year, and a conversation about working together came about quite naturally,” he said.
He added: “Bonfire was coming off the back of a very strong year and I was keen to capitalise on momentum. Ardmore were in a position to back that belief and fund a growth plan. It also provided a perfect opportunity for Ardmore to get a credible footing into the Dublin market. There’s great excitement in the office with a new startup vibe going on. We have plans to bring in some new hires very quickly and start chasing new business with a strong focus on brilliant creativity.”
