French/West/Vaughan (FWV) one of the nation’s largest independently-owned public relations, advertising and digital marketing agencies, announced 10 new hires and six promotions to support its continued growth. The five-time Holmes Report Consumer Agency of the Year Finalist has expanded its senior leadership team, added key talent to its creative, media and account service departments, and recruited an industry veteran to its pet and veterinary practice, FWV Fetching.
Cary Cox joins FWV as Vice President from Cox Marketing Group, a firm she led for 19 years. She served as an Assistant Secretary for Marketing and Communications for the NC Department of Natural and Cultural Resources, overseeing marketing for natural, cultural, tourism and historic destinations. After starting her career in politics, Cox has served clients across multiple industry sectors including restaurant and hospitality, renewable energy, healthcare, retail and real estate. She is a graduate of the College of William and Mary.
Heather Scatamacchia joins FWV as Vice President – Finance. She comes to the agency from MedThink, a full-service marketing agency serving healthcare and pharmaceutical clients where she was responsible for company-wide accounting functions. Prior to MedThink, Scatamacchia held accounting and financial analyst positions for KBI Biopharma and Performance Incorporated. She is a Certified Public Accountant who holds both undergraduate and Master’s degrees in Accounting and Business Administration.
FWV Fetching welcomes pet and veterinary marketing specialist Kerry Branon as Group Account Director. Branon previously led the communications and marketing team at the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW), where she worked for 15 years. During this time, she developed award-winning client work that spanned digital, social, creative and film. Branon graduated from Suffolk University and is currently earning her Master’s degree in Business Administration from Elon University.
“We are extremely fortunate to add outstanding executive leadership to our team. Cary’s vast experience will be utilized to provide senior counsel to clients. Heather’s primary role will be financial stewardship. She has already implemented positive change in the short period that she’s been with us,” said Rick French, Chairman & CEO. “Our agency continues to experience year-over-year growth, including our pet and veterinary division, FWV Fetching. As a group account director, Kerry brings invaluable knowledge that will only help us elevate our work even further.”
The FWV creative team has added Deegan Mundy, formerly associate producer and videographer at Narrative Content Group in Atlanta, as Creative Producer and Director of Photography. Her portfolio includes work for global and national clients such as Georgia Pacific, Aaron’s, NAPA Auto Parts and the Georgia Aquarium. Mundy is a graduate of the Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communications at the University of Georgia. She graduated Magna Cum Laude.
Richard Gates adds to the creative talent as Art Director. Previously he held positions at full-service ad agencies, Love Communications and Saxon Horne, in Salt Lake City. He supported accounts that ranged from travel and tourism, to sports, to spirits, including: Visit Salt Lake, the Utah Jazz and Mountain West Hard Cider. Gates received a BA from Campbell University.
Maggie Temmel rounds out the creative team as Project and Production Manager. She comes from ad agency DiD Agency Group, LLC in Philadelphia, where she was project manager on the Johnson & Johnson account. Temmel is a graduate of Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania, with a BA in Communication Studies.
Three strategic hires have been made in the media department. Hélène Parker signs on as Digital Media Manager. She comes from excelerate Digital, in Raleigh, where she was a senior display strategist leading programmatic and paid social campaigns for top-tier clients. Parker is a graduate of Virginia Wesleyan University, with a BA in Business and is originally from Senegal.
Ashley Stephenson joins as Paid Social Manager. Formerly at Ply Gem, she managed organic and paid social campaigns for e-commerce and B2B publicly-traded organizations as a social media and content specialist. Stephenson is a graduate of NC State University, with a BS in Business Administration, a concentration in Marketing and minor in Spanish. She graduated Summa Cum Laude.
Rachel Zima completes the dynamic media team as a Media Coordinator. She attended the University of North Carolina – Wilmington and received a BS in Communication Studies. Zima held several integrated marketing internships, including positions at Textron Utility and Pioneer Strategies, a communication agency.
On the account service side, Ford Springer joins as Account Executive. He will support the agency’s flagship client Wrangler, among others. Previously Ford held positions in marketing, operations management and reporting at the news publication, The Daily Caller, in Washington, DC. He attended the University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill School of Media and Journalism.
“I couldn’t be more satisfied with our talent in the creative, media and account service departments,” added French. “They are instrumental in driving the innovation necessary to deliver award-winning, revenue-generating and reputation-building work for our clients.”
Beyond the new hires, FWV has promoted Nothailah Meehan to Associate Vice President – Media, Erin McGuire to Account Supervisor, Jerstin Crosby to Senior Social Media Art Director, Laura Wallenta to Social Media Manager, Molly Beitz to Associate Art Director and Rachel Jackson to Account Executive.
