Quadrant Private Equity managing partner Jonathon Pearce, whose firm finalised a deal to purchase outdoor advertising business QMS Media just before the COVID-19 crisis hit, is doubling down on the business' nascent sports media and technology division to drive growth outside its traditional billboards business that has taken a hit during the coronavirus pandemic.

When the deal struck in October 2019, which valued QMS equity at $420 million, no one could have predicted that extended COVID-19 lockdowns and forced working from home would throw the outdoor advertising market into such disarray.