Agency.com Closes Portland Office; Lays Off 200

By Ryan Naraine

New York-based Agency.com announced it would shut down its office in Portland, Org. and lay off about 200 employees in a reorganization program that includes about 130 billable consultants.

Agency.com, which is headquartered a few blocks from the destroyed World Trade Center towers, said none of the 300 Manhattan-based employees would be affected by the cuts.

The interactive shop, which is on the verge of merging with Seneca Investments, said the reorganization program would start on September 21 and would cost about $18 million to $23 million in the third quarter.

The company said the staff cuts, which would properly align its capacity with the lessened demand for interactive services, would save about $25 million annually.

“The company’s reorganization plans include a new management structure focused on the sale and delivery of (our) services to its global client base through a Client Partner structure. Client Partners are senior executives throughout the company who will be responsible for client accounts. Additionally, the company will be aligning its services along key vertical industries,” according to a company statement.

Agency.com CEO Chan Suh described the demand for interactive services as “challenging in the near future” but said the company remains committed to the future of the industry.

Founded in 1995, Agency.com has offices in Amsterdam, Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Copenhagen, Dallas, London, Paris, San Francisco, New Jersey and affiliate offices in Australia, Korea and Singapore.

Separately, Seneca Investments has made an offer to acquire all outstanding shares of San Francisco-based Organic, Agency.com’s sister company, for $0.33 a share. Organic was trading at $0.29 a share in morning trading. The company didn’t say whether it intended to merge the two firms, should the Organic deal go through.

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