Howden announces acquisition of Gravitas to continue US retail expansion and accelerate global Sport & Entertainment capabilities

London, 18 September 2025 – Howden today announces that it will acquire Gravitas Insurance Agency LLC (“Gravitas”), a pre-eminent US retail brokerage specialising in contingency insurance for music, sport and live events. The proposed acquisition is subject to customary closing conditions.

This acquisition represents another important step in Howden’s strategy to expand in the US - the world’s largest insurance market - and further extends its global Sport & Entertainment capability.  

Headquartered in Los Angeles and with clients across America, Gravitas designs and delivers state-of-the-art insurance programmes for the entertainment sector. It represents many of the world’s top performing artists and touring acts, live event organisers, talent agencies and record labels.  

Gravitas was founded in 2022 by John Tomlinson as a top tier retail brokerage exclusively focused on delivering contingency insurance strategies for the music, sport and live event communities. Prior to launching Gravitas, Tomlinson built the North America entertainment platform at Lockton, where he established one of the industry’s most formidable music-related insurance practices.  Marlene Benoit joined Tomlinson as a Partner at Gravitas, and previously led the North America Contingency team at Lockton, specialising in music-related non-appearance coverage.

Jim Hays, Vice Chair, Howden, said: “As Howden recently made clear by establishing a U.S. leadership team for its expansion in this dynamic market, we are committed to creating opportunities for the most talented and leading players in the sector. The addition of Gravitas is a great example of how we are growing our business in the U.S. through a mix of talent and strategic acquisitions. By harnessing our outstanding global capabilities with specialist expertise, we deliver service with a difference to clients.”

This announcement follows Howden’s other recent Sport & Entertainment acquisitions across the world, including: UK performing arts insurance broker, Hencilla Canworth; German film and entertainment insurance broker Franz Gossler; and Boni Aldaya, Spain’s leading entertainment broking house.

Duncan Fraser, Global Head of Sport & Entertainment, Howden said: "The US represents 60% of the total global Sport & Entertainment premium, so the scale of the opportunity we have in front of us is immense. Our combined specialist expertise in sport, media, entertainment and equine, alongside Howden’s global platform and growing US retail business, will mean we are a magnet for top industry talent – essential in delivering outstanding service to clients.”

Charlie Connell, Head of Entertainment, Howden, commented: "We know Gravitas is a fantastic partner for us, having worked with them for many years.  As we take this exciting step together to build a sport, media, entertainment and equine business in the US as part of our expanding global practice, we look forward to being able to offer our American clients a real alternative and an exciting home for talent.” 

John Tomlinson, Founder and CEO, Gravitas adds: “The powerful partnership between Gravitas and Howden was forged many years ago and has proven to be a genuine difference maker for the entertainment community. This exciting next evolution as a unified front will truly force multiply our ability to deliver unparalleled outcomes for the clients we serve and become the destination of choice for the top talent in our industry.”