Jackson Spalding Grows with New Accounts and Team Members

Veteran Journalists Among Eight New Hires

ATLANTA—Jackson Spalding, an image creation, cultivation and communications firm with offices in Atlanta and Athens, Ga., is on track to well exceed its 2006 growth projections with significant new assignments from existing clients and new accounts from a variety of business sectors.

New Business Shows Agency Breadth

Rollins, Inc. continues to increase the agency’s responsibilities through the Orkin Canada division, which is the third business unit win since Jackson Spalding became agency of record for the Orkin Residential work in 2002. Jackson Spalding also expanded its transportation and public affairs practice with the addition of the North Fulton Community Improvement District, a client similar in scope to the Cumberland Community Improvement District already on the Jackson Spalding client roster.

Real estate continues as a Jackson Spalding cornerstone with the recent additions of Ambling Companies, a Valdosta-based real estate development, construction and management company, Kennedy Capital Group and The Aberdeen, a high-rise luxury community in the works by Taz Realty Company. The agency also completed project work recently for Paces Ferry Realty. The Jackson Spalding Athens office added Nichols Land, a major commercial and retail developer in northeast Georgia, Beech Creek Preserve, an environmentally sensitive residential community in Athens, and The BriarRose, a country estate and club located in Hancock County.

Recent consumer wins include project work for Kaiser Permanente of Georgia, Multnomah Publishing, H. Stockton retailers and Tifosi Optics, the innovative outdoor eyewear manufacturer. Royal Purple, a Texas-based manufacturer of synthetic oil for consumer and industrial use, and TeleNet Marketing, a marketing firm focused on lead generation and business nurturing, are new business-to-business clients based in Athens.

The agency also took on strategic research work for the American Boiler Manufacturers Association, a non-profit trade association.

“We are very pleased to see our portfolio expanding across the board — not only in terms of business sectors, but also related to our growing JS Creative division,” said Glen Jackson, principal. “Our video and graphic services, as well as our training divisions, continue to add significant value to our clients.”

New Staff a Response to Growth

As a result of booming business, Jackson Spalding has added an unprecedented eight new team members at various account levels in the past three months.

Bryan Long, formerly the real estate reporter for the Atlanta Business Chronicle, and Renee DeGross Valdes, formerly the retail reporter for the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, took account lead positions. Long’s career includes positions with CNN.com, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution and the Sarasota Herald-Tribune. Valdes held similar posts with the Raleigh News and Observer and the Raleigh Business Journal.

Vicky Lelash joins the agency following a coast-to-coast career with a global communications firm. In her most recent role, she helped lead communications efforts for the Brand Atlanta Campaign. She brings an impressive portfolio of award-winning public affairs work to Jackson Spalding.

Danielle Pacho, a veteran of two Atlanta boutique agencies, brings additional real estate marketing and public relations experience to the firm’s real estate practice. Four interns were promoted to full-time entry-level positions. They include Mary Zimmerman, a Robertson Scholar graduate of The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Genna Gaddy, a cum laude graduate of Wake Forest University, and Robin Hubier, an award-winning graduate from the Berry College Department of Communications.

Brandon Hanick moved from internship to full-time status in Athens, bringing experience from internships for the National Institute for Health, the American Cancer Society and the Florida Restaurant Association. He earned a Master of Arts in Mass Communications from the University of Georgia where he was a member of the University Honors Program. Jackson Spalding’s Athens office now has five full-time employees and a staff of seven.

“We take considerable pride in our people,” said co-founder Bo Spalding. “They are the secret to our growth. We place a special focus on careful hiring and mentoring, and we believe it makes for a work environment that is second to none.”

About Jackson Spalding

Jackson Spalding is one of the largest independent marketing communications firms in the Southeast, with offices in Atlanta, Athens, Ga. and Dallas. It is a full-service image creation, cultivation and communications firm, representing companies “from first step to blue chip.” The company includes more than 60 professionals working across many business and organizational sectors. Clients include Chick-fil-A, Cousins Properties, Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, Delta Air Lines, Morehouse School of Medicine, Orkin Inc., Post Properties, Primrose Schools, Publix Super Markets and The University of Georgia. Jackson Spalding is a partner in Public Relations Organisation International, a global network of independent public relations consultancies, and in the Issues Management Network, a consortium of crisis communications firms. For more information, please visit www.jacksonspalding.com.

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