NEW ORLEANS –– New Orleans-based integrated marketing agency Peter Mayer has announced Michelle Edelman as its next CEO and owner. Edelman, who was named president and chief strategy officer of the agency in 2020, succeeds Mark and Josh Mayer, whose father founded the agency in 1967, and who have jointly owned and managed the agency for more than 30 years. The change in ownership is the capstone of a new leadership team that has been put in place over the last five years.
“It was important to us that the agency remain independent, and that there would be continuity of our values,” said Mark Mayer. “We are excited about the agency’s future under Michelle’s leadership. She is a brilliant strategist and a proven leader, and will run the agency with character, intelligence and heart.”
“Mark and I are proud of what we accomplished after taking over from our father. Proud of the high standards we achieved with our creative product, proud of the three Effies the agency won, and proud of all the talented people we were lucky to work alongside,” added Josh Mayer.
Edelman joined Peter Mayer in 2013 to build the future of the agency’s strategy and planning group drawing from her experience leading marketing for enterprise technology companies and brand planning for global agencies. Prior, she worked on Dove’s Real Beauty campaign and provided strategic guidance to Adidas, Huggies, Allstate, Quiznos, Motorola, DirectTV, Sun Microsystems and the San Diego Convention and Visitors Bureau. She was president and director of communications planning at NYCA, a boutique firm in San Diego, and served in executive management and strategic planning roles at Ogilvy Chicago and Leo Burnett USA.
“I’m honored and humbled that Mark and Josh have entrusted me with their father’s legacy. Peter had a deep empathy for his clients and the realities of managing and growing a business. As we look ahead to the future, this mindset – creativity in service of business outcomes – will only become more relevant,” said Edelman.
As chief strategy officer, Edelman architected an agency-wide, strategy-first mindset, resulting in several of the agency’s most successful client wins, including NASA’s Kennedy Space Center, Ochsner Health System and Coastal Mississippi Tourism.
Edelman provided guidance and support to the agency’s many travel and tourism and food service clients as they navigated the challenges of the pandemic. As a result, the agency successfully retained 100% of its clients during a historically difficult time.
With a career strategist at the helm, the agency will continue to build upon its foundation of trusted advisor, with an expanded and deepened strategic offering.
“Looking ahead to the future, my vision is to accelerate Peter Mayer’s evolution into a fully strategy-led creative powerhouse that partners cross-functionally with clients to deliver business outcomes,” said Edelman.
