 Rob Falls |
Falls Communications has acquired Cleveland-based brand management and advertising agency Wyse Advertising.
Financial terms of the acquisition were not made publicly available.
One of Ohio’s largest independent full-service agencies, Wyse was founded in 1951 by Marcus “Marc” Wyse and then-wife Lois Wyse. The duo became ad industry legends, coining famous taglines such as “With a name like Smucker’s, it has to be good” for then-unknown client the J. M. Smucker Co. Wyse was also behind the classic “Ask Sherwin-Williams” phrase and was responsible for rechristening then-small retailer Bed ’n Bath as Bed Bath & Beyond.
The company was sold to agency employees in 2007. The same year, Lois Wyse died at the age of 80. Marc Wyse followed four years later at the age of 88.
In light of the acquisition, the agency will henceforth be known as Wyse, a Falls company. The newly-combined organization will count more than 80 staffers.
Falls president and CEO Rob Falls now assumes leadership of both entities. Wyse CEO Michael Marino, meanwhile, plans to retire.
In terms of forthcoming staffing changes, Falls personnel told O’Dwyer’s that the agency is continuing to evaluate the needs of its clients “and will staff the firm accordingly.”
A decision has also not presently been made regarding Wyse’s future physical office space, but Falls personnel told O’Dwyer’s that the agency will remain in downtown Cleveland.
Falls president and CEO Rob Falls told O’Dwyer’s that the new combined entity will offer clients a broader array of products and services as well as shared resources and expertise to help clients better connect with consumers and customers.
“By bringing Wyse into the Falls family, we are gaining decades of expertise building top brands while expanding our services to include advertising, media buying and expanded creative capabilities,” Falls told O’Dwyer’s. “Both Falls and Wyse understand brands are managing experiences and reputations everywhere and we share a desire to partner with our clients to help solve their business challenges through strategic and creative thinking.”
Cleveland-based Falls Communications, which was founded in 1989, specializes in crisis communications, investor relations, corporate communications and digital. The agency maintains an additional office in Washington D.C
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