North Highland Adds Bluestock Advisors Team
The Atlanta consulting firm has absorbed a 16-person team from Bluestock Advisors, which was founded by former North Highland executive Jennifer Merritt.
Updated on Nov. 3, 2026 in Business Strategy
Atlanta-headquartered management consulting firm North Highland has added the 16-person team from Bluestock Advisors. Jennifer Merritt, who founded Bluestock Advisors in 2020, rejoined North Highland as senior managing director and Atlanta market lead.
Why it matters
The move brings an established consulting team and a returning leader into North Highland's Atlanta market, which serves retail, manufacturing, health and beauty, technology, and insurance clients. It reflects the continued consolidation of smaller specialty advisory firms into larger management consultancies.
The 16-person Bluestock Advisors team joins North Highland, which has approximately 1,500 employees across 17 offices in the US, Ecuador, the UK, Romania, and South Africa. The announcement does not disclose revenue or deal terms.
The players
North Highland
North Highland is an Atlanta-headquartered management consulting firm founded in 1992 that operates 17 offices across several countries.
Jennifer Merritt
Jennifer Merritt is a consulting executive with nearly 30 years of experience in consulting, retail, and consumer goods, who previously led North Highland's global retail practice.
Bluestock Advisors
Bluestock Advisors is a management consultancy founded in 2020 that serves retail, manufacturing, health and beauty, technology, and insurance clients from its Atlanta base.
The details
Bluestock Advisors, founded in 2020 by North Highland alumnus Jennifer Merritt, has an Atlanta-based consultant team serving retail, manufacturing, health and beauty, technology, and insurance companies. Merritt spent more than 12 years at North Highland, including as vice president and global retail lead, and four years at Home Depot before returning.
Timeline
2020: Bluestock Advisors founded by Jennifer Merritt.
1992: North Highland founded.
November 3, 2026: Bluestock team addition to North Highland announced.
Market Landscape
The deal extends a pattern in which boutique advisory firms are absorbed by larger management consultancies seeking deeper specialty practices. For North Highland, it strengthens an Atlanta market base that the firm says has served more than 150 organizations over 20 years.
Clients of Bluestock Advisors in retail, manufacturing, health and beauty, technology, and insurance may now be served through North Highland's larger platform. The announcement does not specify changes to pricing or service terms.
The takeaway
Consulting firms that combine a returning leader with an established team can accelerate market presence without building practices from scratch. Clients evaluating advisory partners may find that team-level continuity, rather than firm size alone, shapes the working relationship.
Further reading
For more on how firms like this position their regional practices, explore Business Strategy coverage.
Source note: This article includes information reported by Consulting.
