Sticking with restaurant clients was great, but public relations executive Bryanne Lawless wanted to mix things up a bit more.
So Lawless left Localite LA, a food-oriented public relations firm in Redondo Beach she co-founded just last year, and launched lifestyle public relations firm Blnd in Hermosa Beach. Its name reflects the agency’s strategy of blending experience and skills with a passion for promoting lifestyle brands.
“(My partners) didn’t want to go out of the foodie box,” she said. “If we did take a lifestyle client, only I would work with them.”
Lawless said she left the agency on good terms and is happy to be working in the lifestyle space.
Blnd opened in July with the help of an investor she declined to name. It has a staff of six and eight clients on retainer. But the agency works with several others on a project basis. It recently signed Village Care International, an Auburn-based non-profit, and is helping to plan a large charity event in about five months.
Lawless said it’s a ripe time to be in public relations as many local businesses are seeking help from agencies.
“There’s so much business for us right now because there’s so many entrepreneurs,” she said. “Now, the mom and pop down the street need help to be seen in the local papers and with social media.”
Going Tech
Public relations firm Method Communications in Salt Lake City is getting an influx of tech and mobile clients with the recent acquisition of L.A.-based Kindling Communications.
Carolyn Guss, Kindling’s founder, said she was looking forward to bringing her skills and clients, including L.A. startup Fresh Nation, an online marketplace that lets users shop from local farmers markets and offers same-day delivery, to the Method team.
Guss has been named general manager of Method’s new L.A. office. The value of the deal was not disclosed.
Kindling was founded in 2012 and has worked with such companies as Apple, Samsung and Microsoft. Guss was previously head of corporate communications for European telecommunications firm Orange.
The deal comes at a time when other communication firms have announced expansion into the L.A. market, including Boston’s Warner Communications, which opened an office in Santa Monica two months ago to service its West Coast clients.
Agencies & Accounts
Ad agency TBWAChiatDay in Playa Vista has named Mark Peters creative director. Peters was previously creative director at Deutsch LA. … Public relations firm Finn Partners in Century City has been named PR agency of record for German-based luxury appliance manufacturer BSH Home Appliances. … Direct-response ad agency Creative Direct Marketing Group has opened an office in Nashville, Tenn. It will be headed by Caleb Huey, who also will serve as its business development coordinator. … Downtown L.A. public relations firm Golin, formerly GolinHarris, has named Timothy Bruns western region creative director and Corey Langworthy executive director of consumer marketing. Bruns previously worked as creative director at marketing communications firm JWT NYC. Langworthy was previously group director at Citizen Relations in Irvine. … Digital marketing agency Conversant Inc. of Westlake Village has named Raju Malhotra senior vice president of products. Malhotra previously held the same position at software firm Centro Inc. in Chicago. … Santa Monica communications agency Phelps has signed the Hong Kong Tourism Board as a client. The agency will be its social media marketing agency of record. … Westwood-based communications firm Olmstead Williams has acquired clients Ice Energy and Geneva Healthcare. … Ad agency Quigley-Simpson in West L.A. opened a New York office last month. It is led by Tyler Jennings, who serves as the company’s director of integrated communications. … Creative agency Standard Time has acquired client olloclip, a mobile photography company in Huntington Beach. … Public relations firm Murphy O’Brien has promoted six of its employees: Laura Millett and Rachel Esserman to vice presidents, Ashley King to account director, Jen DeAngelis to digital media senior account executive and Kaitlin Novell to senior account executive.
Staff reporter Subrina Hudson can be reached at [email protected] or (323) 549-5225, ext. 251.
