As the year comes to a close and we prepare to ring in 2016, the Heron team would like to share some of our best moments, campaigns and anniversaries from 2015.
From multi-million dollar hotel renovations and national placements, to new accounts and rock star additions to our team, Heron Agency has had quite the year! As an award-winning, premier lifestyle communications agency with clients nationwide, we are looking forward to continued growth and success going into 2016!
Heron PR becomes Heron Agency
15 years of success in this industry is a huge milestone. So what better way to celebrate than by launching a whole new look for the agency? This summer, we become Heron Agency, with a brand new logo and website! Same agency, same work ethic, same results – brand new look.
Chef Roby on The Food Network
We secured multiple national placements this year for our clients, but one of our favorites was the real life Willy Wonka, Pastry Chef Alain Roby of the All Chocolate Kitchen, featured on The Food Network’s Outrageous Chocolate Special! Having broken 3 Guinness World Records, Chef Roby showcased his newest creation, a 948-pound, all white chocolate EROS God of Love for the special. We are always so honored to represent such a world-class Pastry Chef!
Agency of Record for Massage Envy of Illinois
Hard work, good relationships and successful campaigns go a long way. What started as a 3-month campaign for Komen for the Cure in 2008 has led Heron to be the official agency of record for all 44 Massage Envy locations in Illinois!
ABC National Suite of the Week!
ABC News can choose from thousands of hotels around the country for their Suite of the Week features, so when 4 of your hotel clients are featured in 2015 alone, it goes to show how much hard work, dedication and persistence produce real results. We’re always so proud to represent some of the nation’s most stunning properties!
The Marriott Theatre turns 40!
Remaining relevant on Chicago’s theater scene can be challenging for most theaters, but not for The Marriott Theatre! They celebrated their 40th Anniversary with a spectacular season, including the World Premiere of OCTOBER SKY, which received spectaculars reviews and a rave from VARIETY! Here’s to another 40 years!
Geja’s Café Named Nation’s Most Romantic Restaurant
In addition to celebrating their 50th Anniversary this summer, legendary Chicago restaurant Geja’s Café was named the nation’s Most Romantic Restaurant by USA TODAY! Heron’s years of securing national placements, persistence and hard work resulted in Geja’s beating out some of the country’s most recognized dining destinations, further cementing Geja’s position as THE restaurant of romance. We are honored to have represented the iconic establishment for the past 14 years!
New accounts!
We couldn’t have had such a successful year without all of our amazing new clients!
The Midwest launch of popular LA-based pizza concept, 800 Degrees
The agency of record for Vanille
The lavish Chicago Yacht Club and the 107th Annual Race to Mackinac
The launch of the brand new American Writers Museum on the Magnificent Mile
Agency of record for Valli Produce
Renaissance Chicago Downtown Hotel’s $24 million renovation, and 4th Global Day of Discovery featuring Robin Thicke and Natalie La Rose
Hampton Inn Chicago Downtown opens in the historic Chicago Motor Club Building
More accounts mean more team members!
We’re thrilled to welcome Jennifer Vander Sanden as our new Vice President, and Courtney Gillen as our newest Publicist! Jennifer joined Heron with more than a decade of media and public relations experience. She began her career as an Emmy award-winning news producer at stations in Rockford and Chicago including CLTV and WMAQ. She most recently served as Executive Producer of Good Day Chicago at WFLD. Courtney joined Heron after receiving a Bachelor’s in Advertising and Public Relations from Loyola University Chicago where she became familiar with the industry through internships, volunteering with the Publicity Club of Chicago (PCC), and Loyola University Chicago’s chapter of PRSSA, in addition to writing for her college paper.
Bad Jews Extends 9 months
Due to our strategic marketing strategy, BAD JEWS had a sold out run at the North Shore Center for the Performing Arts, and transferred to the Royal George Theatre, for a nine-month run!
Le Méridien Grand Openings
When clients hire us for one project, it almost always leads to other campaigns across the nation. After the success of the grand opening campaign for Le Méridien Chicago – Oakbrook Center last year, Heron was brought on to launch the openings for Le Méridien Indianapolis and Le Méridien Columbus, The Joseph, which resulted in national placements including Architectural Digest, Forbes and CNN!
14th Annual Chicago Sketch Comedy Festival
Being able to represent the nation’s largest sketch comedy festival every year is pretty neat. This year, Chicago Sketchfest turned 14 with an impressive lineup featuring Danny Pudi of NBC’s Community! Due to Heron’s blended social media, marketing and PR strategy, the festival had a record breaking year, with more applications and ticket sales than ever before!
#HappilyEverHedditch
We couldn’t end our 2015 highlights without congratulating our amazingly talented Vice President, Lianne, who became Mrs. Hedditch this summer! After a beautiful ceremony, Lianne and her husband, Mitch, spent their honeymoon in the breathtaking Greek islands!
