Lambert, Edwards & Associates has grown from a start-up in a basement to advising leaders in the boardrooms of global companies and national brands, and its new brand – Lambert – reflects this growth from regional leader to national player.
Timed with its 20-year anniversary on Sept. 1, the firm has changed its corporate name to Lambert & Co., simplifying for clarity and impact, while retaining the ampersand as a nod to its heritage and the associates who have made the firm Michigan’s largest PR agency and a top-10 investor relations firm nationally. The branding effort includes a new logo, website and signage that will go up this week at firm offices in Grand Rapids, Lansing, Detroit and New York City.
The new “Lambert frame” logo will carry through to other corporate identity, signage, marketing materials and internal culture elements. The frame also symbolizes the creative frame of mind and expert frame of reference Lambert brings to its clients. Core visuals include new imagery, colors and fonts for the firm and the agency’s national practice areas in Automotive & Mobility, Business & Financial Services, Consumer, Education, Food & Beverage, Healthcare, Investor Relations and Private Equity.
Lambert also unveiled new Core Values to clearly define its culture, agency philosophy and brand personality: Tenacious, Clever, Playmaking, Honorable and Team-based.
“The Lambert, Edwards & Associates name and LE&A acronym needed a refresh and a transformation,” said Jeff Lambert, CEO and founder of Lambert. “We’ve come a long way from the early days of implying we had associates to actually having nearly 70 of them, and we need to differentiate ourselves among the vast array of PR and integrated marketing agencies, not to mention the thousands of law firms, accounting firms and every other indistinguishable multi-name firm. The Lambert brand has stood for a unique combination of big ideas and bottom-line results for two decades, and this cleaner identity matches our firm of today.”
Lambert was founded in 1998 with the aim of becoming a national communications agency with distinct, full-service capabilities in public relations, investor relations and public affairs. Over the past two decades, Lambert has achieved a nearly 20 percent CAGR (compound annual growth rate) and added multiple offices and new expertise through acquisitions of New York City-based Owen Blicksilver PR in 2018; Lansing, Michigan-based Sterling Corporation in 2014; Atlanta-based IR Squared in 2011; and Detroit-based John Bailey & Associates in 2008.
“As we take our own medicine as marketers with an aim to be simple, memorable and relevant, the new brand sets the tone for the firm as we embark on the next 20 years of growth,” added Matt Jackson, partner and managing director at Lambert. “We made ourselves the client, worked with our friends at branding firm Extra Credit Projects and arrived at a name, logo and look that matches our achievements and aspirations for greatness.”
Today, Lambert has more than 150 clients based in 20 states and six countries, including industry leaders and challenger brands like Belle Tire, Continental North America, Green Giant Fresh, Huron Capital, North American International Auto Show, Spartan Motors, Moosetracks Ice Cream, Plackers, Spectrum Health, Stroh’s and Wolverine Worldwide.
In addition to delivering business results for its clients, Lambert has also earned national recognition for its efforts. In addition to its business success, Lambert has prioritized community involvement and investing in its local communities. Since 1998, Lambert has provided more than $1.5 million in pro-bono services to support major issues like Flint water, the Detroit bankruptcy and Detroit Public Schools, as well as dozens of leading non-profit organizations like the YMCA, Goodwill, United Way, Make-A-Wish of Michigan, Junior Achievement, Design Core Detroit, Michigan Association of Mental Health Boards, Bethany Christian Services, Paws with a Cause and numerous others.
“Our 20 years of milestones represent the sum total of hard work by individuals—both current employees and alums—who have made Lambert the firm that it is today,” Lambert concluded. “We set out to build an agency, but it’s our people who built the brand. And it’s this same secret ingredient of tenacious and clever talent that will continue to make Lambert the firm of choice for clients, business partners, staff and the community.”
