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Woods Rogers returns to original name
Call it a strategy of going back to the future — the merged Woods Rogers Vandeventer Black law firm is shortening its name back to its original appellation of Woods Rogers, executives announced Monday. In 2022, Roanoke-based Woods Rogers merged with Vandeventer Black in Norfolk, creating the state’s fifth largest law firm, with more than […]
VCU revives Atlanta’s Creative Circus ad school
Editor’s note: The print version of this story in the May 2024 issue of Virginia Business incorrectly reported the amount of Virginia Commonwealth University’s purchase of the Creative Circus. VCU acquired Creative Circus’ branding and intellectual assets from Texas-based Ancora Education for $75,000. The potential bottom line wasn’t the sole motivator behind Virginia Commo[...]
Cavallo announces retirement
MullenLowe Global CEO Kristen Cavallo, formerly also CEO of Richmond-based marketing and advertising firm The Martin Agency, is retiring from her role to pursue political and social activism, MullenLowe and Martin parent Interpublic Group of Cos. (IPG) announced Monday. Cavallo became CEO of MullenLowe Global in November 2022 and continued to lead Martin until January, […]
Martin Agency has new CEO
Danny Robinson is taking over from Kristen Cavallo as CEO of The Martin Agency, parent Interpublic Group of Cos. announced Tuesday. Robinson has been chief creative officer of the Richmond-based ad agency since 2020. Cavallo has headed Martin for the past six years, and IPG named her global CEO of MullenLowe Group 14 months ago. […]
2023 Virginia Business Person of the Year: Kristen Cavallo
In 2017, Kristen Cavallo and her son, Matt, then a student on spring break from James Madison University, set out to climb Mount Kilimanjaro with a seven-day window to summit. Statistics from Kilimanjaro National Park, last updated in the 2000s, show a correlation between a route’s duration and success rate: Climbers on seven-day routes have […]
‘Smokeless’ Snoop Dogg ad is Martin Agency creation
Known as much for his love of weed as for his music, celebrity rapper Snoop Dogg posted Thursday on X that he was “giving up smoke,” an announcement that raised eyebrows among some fans, while others figured it must be a marketing ploy. To be blunt, it was the latter, and Richmond’s The Martin Agency […]
W&M Law School hires comms, marketing officer
William & Mary Law School has named Doris Taylor as its first chief communications and marketing officer. Taylor began her new role June 12 and has primary responsibility for developing and executing strategic communication plans and initiatives to support the engagement and professional needs of the law school. Taylor was most recently interim director of […]
Richmond ad agency Yebo announces closure after 35 years
Formerly known as the Barber Martin Agency, Richmond-based Yebo has announced its closure after 35 years. The firm changed its name to Yebo, pronounced “Yay-bow,” in early 2020 to better reflect the firm’s mission. The name means “yes” in the Zulu language of Southern African, which includes Zimbabwe, birth nation of Yebo President and CEO […]
Richmond region launches state’s first tourism district
Virginia’s first tourism improvement district received approval this week and can begin collecting funds from Richmond-region travelers to fund tourism marketing efforts beginning July 1. Following Richmond City Council’s approval vote this week, the new tourism improvement district, or TID, received the necessary support to move forward. Designated areas that raise funds for tourism m[...]
Sentara Healthcare rebrands as Sentara Health
Sentara Healthcare is rebranding as Sentara Health, the Norfolk-based health system announced Thursday. Additionally, in its health insurance division, Sentara will retire Sentara Health Plans’ subsidiary brands, Optima Health and Virginia Premier, unifying them under the Sentara Health Plans brand by the end of the year. “It is an exciting day for all of us […]
Martin Agency is Ad Age’s 2023 Agency of Year
Richmond advertising firm The Martin Agency has been named Ad Age’s 2023 Agency of the Year, a year after being named as a standout on the trade publication’s A-List. Ad Age, a global media outlet covering the marketing and advertising industries, cited Martin’s record; the ad agency posted its second-best year of growth in its […]
Two Hampton Roads marketing agencies to merge
Norfolk-based WB Marketing‘s parent company has acquired majority interest in Virginia Beach-based marketing and communications firm Meridian Group and will merge the two into one agency, Meridian Group announced Tuesday. Mike Matacunas from Norfolk-based private investment firm Five Hill Capital — WB Marketing’s parent — acquired the majority interest from Meridian Group founder J[...]
