Footwear brand Skechers is shifting a significant share of its global media buying to a new partner. After a competitive review process, the brand selected Horizon Global, a joint venture between Havas Media Network and Horizon Media.
The new agreement covers 31 markets across Latin America, Asia-Pacific, and Central and Eastern Europe, including Japan, the Philippines, Germany, Spain, and Portugal. U.S. media operations remain in-house at Skechers as before. The first campaigns are expected to run in the second half of 2026.
At the center of the strategy is Horizon Global's AI-powered platform, BluConverged, which unifies audience strategy, data, activation, and reporting in one system. Skechers is using the platform to build out omnichannel capability and accelerate growth internationally — international markets have become the brand's "primary growth engine," now accounting for roughly two-thirds of total revenue.
Horizon Global CEO Bob Lord called the win "a powerful validation of our model and the unique value we bring to global marketers," emphasizing an approach centered on "platform transparency and open-ecosystem innovation."
This move follows a broader consolidation trend in media buying across footwear. In June 2026, Adidas shifted its $512 million global advertising account from WPP to Omnicom. Separately, Skechers itself went private in September 2025 after being acquired by 3G Capital for $9 billion.
This isn't just an agency switch — it signals that global brands increasingly choose media partners based on AI-driven data and platform integration capability rather than execution alone. Notably, Skechers kept the U.S. in-house while consolidating 31 international markets under a single partner: rather than splitting agencies by market, the brand is centralizing audience strategy and data on one platform to drive omnichannel efficiency.
Following Adidas, this move suggests large-scale media-account consolidation is becoming a settled pattern in footwear and sports categories. For brands managing multiple markets simultaneously, an integrated partnership that connects data, measurement, and activation in one place can be a bigger lever during international growth phases than managing agencies market by market.
See how we help brands build integrated growth strategies in our portfolio, or contact us to discuss your international media strategy.
Horizon Global, a joint venture between Havas Media Network and Horizon Media, selected after a competitive review process.
31 markets across Latin America, Asia-Pacific, and Central and Eastern Europe, including Japan, the Philippines, Germany, Spain, and Portugal. U.S. media operations remain in-house.
BluConverged, Horizon Global's AI-powered platform that unifies audience strategy, data, activation, and reporting.
It follows Adidas's June 2026 move of its $512 million global ad account from WPP to Omnicom, suggesting large-scale global media consolidation is becoming a pattern in the footwear and sports categories.
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