SAGUEZ & Partners acquires New York-based DASH Design
The French agency, one of Europe’s leaders in global design (€33M sales, 120 employees) announces the acquisition of 100% of the shares of New York gold nugget DASH design. This strategic acquisition marks a major step in the company’s development in the United States, the world’s leading brand design market.
United States: 1st brand design market in the world
A land of innovation and therefore of design, this new foray into the USA is no coincidence. Companies, products, services, cities, political figures, iconic architecture... Everything is brand design. Ubiquitous and deeply rooted in the country’s culture, Branding found its roots in the United States (cf. Raymond Loewy, creator of some of the most famous identities of the 20th century). The Americans also invented the art of storytelling to brand, differentiate, inspire and unite... the myths surrounding brands such as Google or Apple perpetuate the tradition. This design philosophy also comes with a culture of daring, where failure, far from being a hindrance, is seen as a lever for innovation. This is fertile ground for SAGUEZ & Partners, who are constantly seeking to invent the new uses of tomorrow.
Acquiring expertise in the hospitality market
Founded by David Ashen in 2004, DASH design has established itself as a reference in the design hospitality sector, at the forefront of the hotel, restaurant, health & well-being and senior-living markets, for global market leaders (MARRIOTT, HILTON, IHG, HYATT). This merger, the fruit of a collaboration initiated post Covid-19 under the name SAGUEZ & DASH, is a decisive step in the development of the French agency SAGUEZ & Partners, which already generates over 30% of its sales internationally, for French customers (VINCI AIRPORT, WESTFIELD, LAGARDÈRE... ) as well as foreign customers (HILTON, MARRIOTT, HUAWEI, INGKA, GROUPE INDIGO...) in several geographical zones (Europe, Japan, China, Brazil, Scandinavia and the USA).
France: the hotel is for the office, for business, for health, for leisure, for travel...
The hospitality dimension borrowed from the hotel industry is much more than an activity. It’s a way of life. An art of hosting that often rhymes with France! In an increasingly digitalized world, the physical place is even more of a creator of links and new outstanding experiences. Brands need to astonish with their difference, build loyalty, create exchange, a strong relationship... The SAGUEZ & DASH alliance between these two hospitality designers is based on this shared ambition: to develop a French art de vivre, with an understanding of the needs of the American market.
Led by a Franco-American duo
Boris Gentine | Managing Creative Director, SAGUEZ & Partners
Boris joined SAGUEZ & Partners as Creative Director in 2002. He later became Associate Creative Director and took charge of major international real estate projects (São Paulo airport, Huawei headquarters in Shanghai, Überseequartier in Hamburg). A globetrotter, he has built the agency’s landmark projects, which ensure that a designer is also a discoverer of the world. In 2015, he created the hospitality department, developing a sensitive, creative and cutting-edge vision of hospitality.
David Ashen | Founder and President DASH design
The most New Yorker of designers. But David and France also share a great love story. For several years, he developed numerous international global design projects as Creative Director at Desgrippes Gobé. In 2004, he founded DASH design, working with the world’s leading hospitality companies. Today, he is one of the leading design figures in the United States.
Photo, 2023. Long Island City, New-York. Left, Boris Gentine. Right, David Ashen.
To remember
DASH design, the American gold nugget
Location: Long Island City, New York.
Performance: 15% EBITDA by 2024.
Workforce: 20 employees.
Main DASH references: MARRIOTT, HILTON, IHG (respectively 1st, 3rd and 4th worldwide), HYATT, GOOGLE, MANDARIN ORIENTAL, RITZ CARLTON, GODIVA, LE MÉRIDIEN, SHERATON, MOXY, KIMPTON..._
SAGUEZ & DASH
An acquisition: purchase of 100% of shares.
Led by a Franco-American duo: Boris Gentine & David Ashen.
An entrepreneurial project: ⅓ of the buyout realized on performance over the next 5 years.
SAGUEZ & DASH Board members: Boris Gentine, Thibault Saguez, David Ashen.
SAGUEZ & Partners
Founded in 1998 by Olivier Saguez
Sales 2024: €33M
New management team: Pierre-Olivier Pigeot, Boris Gentine, Thibault Saguez. Shareholders: 75% Olivier Saguez, 25% associates.
2003 | First Manufacture Design, 14 rue Palouzié, Saint-Ouen-sur-Seine.
2016 | New Manufacture Design, former Alstom industrial hall, Docks de Saint-Ouen.
Two activities: brand identity (strategy & branding) and landmark locations (retail, office, healthcare, hospitality, leisure).
Main SAGUEZ references: UNIBAIL-RODAMCO-WESTFIELD, NESPRESSO, ACCOR, MARRIOTT, GROUPE ROCHER, BPIFRANCE, SNCF, CMA-CGM, PARFUMS CHRISTIAN DIOR, GALERIES LAFAYETTES, VINCI AIRPORT, HUAWEI, AXA IM, HILTON, CHAMONIX, LAGARDÈRE TRAVEL RETAIL, INGKA, MICHELIN, PERNOD RICARD, E. LECLERC, SAINT-OUEN-SUR-SEINE…
Press coverage!
Stratégies, Saguez & Dash un pont entre Paris et New York
CB News, Saguez & Partners, acquiert Dash Design à New York
INfluencia, Saguez & Partners fait l’acquisition de Dash Design à New York
Business Immo, Saguez & Partners acquiert l’agence new-yorkaise Dash Design
Designfax, Saguez : une épopée américaine