Toronto-based Match Marketing Group’s growth push continues as the shopper marketing agency has acquired Montreal-based SVM, Match’s sixth acquisition in the past year in both the U.S. and Canada.

Match president and CEO Brett Farren says the acquisition in early June of SVM – with CPG and retail clients including Kraft, Molson Coors, P&G, Metro and Laura Secord – will help “accelerate” Match’s presence in the French-Canadian market. The agreement was struck following several successful partnerships between Match and SVM on client initiatives, Farren says.

The newly acquired office in Laval will work on both French Canadian initiatives as well as national projects, he says.

Match also recently announced it has hired Greg McDonald as VP of shopper strategy and business development, wagering his brand and category experience will be a major asset in winning new clients for the agency.

With McDonald, who joined Match in April, the company gets someone who has worked in various sales, trade and shopper marketing roles, including time spent at Mars, a Match Marketing client, for nearly a decade. There, he led the creation of the in-store marketing function at Mars Chocolate and played a lead role in the Mars/Wrigley global in-store marketing team. He also worked for several years at Coca-Cola and most recently was senior director, national trade marketing at Labatt Breweries of Canada.

Match President and CEO Brett Farren believes that in the newly-created role, McDonald will be able to understand clients’ challenges and opportunities and help them develop solutions because he’s been in their shoes.