Red is everywhere.
1978. It all began with a beauty contest
Red Letter was founded on a big dose of passion, seasoned with just enough talent to get our first few breaths of air. We published a promotional circular, called the Zipsheet, and produced TV spots. In 1984, we won our first significant piece of business with the Missouri Jaycees. Those who know us may see the symmetry in knowing our first paid gig was for the Anheuser-Busch beauty contest and coronation.
1986. Mentors made a big difference
New clients, Jerry Wieser and Joe Coad, came aboard with the automotive sales event called the Autorama. Nancy Bray, who had failed our founder in one of his college classes, awarded us the Southeast Missouri Hospital account. Jim Drury, of Drury Hotels, gave us furnishings and saved the company after the great flood of ‘86. The list goes on. We're forever grateful.
1992. One word of advice: Plastics
Through the 90s, Red Letter grew with the regional Auto Dealer Groups account. When we acquired our first national account, Spartech Plastics had 9 facilities and $100 million in sales. Ten years later, we helped grow Spartech into 52 facilities and $1.3B in sales. Primestar, cable’s answer to satellite TV, turned into a significant gig for us with national direct response television, point-of-sale and a myriad of other services.
1995. A trip to Marble Hill, Missouri changed everything
In the mid-1990s a European company purchased half a dozen brands of outdoor power equipment, fired the distributors, and started selling direct to mass merchandisers. We were in the middle of a project for one of those distributors, Mid-America Power, when they suggested we visit Marble Hill to meet the Crader family and learn about STIHL. Now, more than 25 years later, we enjoy the incredible privilege of serving as the strategic agency of record for STIHL, its national Branch Distributors and over 9,000 independent STIHL Dealers.
2020. Friends, facilities and fantastic people.
Over the years we’ve been in 7 facilities, with client relationships that often span decades. At the heart of it all, are our people who continue to define our agency and generate our success. In 2020, we acquired Element74, a web services agency with over 600 clients, including the National Network to End Domestic Violence. What started at a kitchen table has become a relentless march to serve our clients and grow their business.
2022. Taking our talents to Music City
With continued and aggressive growth both across our client lists and categories, we opened a new office on the other side of the Mississippi River. Located in Nashville, Tennessee, our newest office has helped us expand our reach and recruit even more great talent.
Our Vision
A REAL DIFFERENCE
What's the difference between good enough and great? We believe it's our people. A team of dreamers, thinkers, doers, and more, who bring the passion and authenticity that separates the work we do from everything else.
THE BIG PICTURE
Don't sweat the small stuff? Sorry, but we do — because we know the small things add up to big things. Whether it's a single ad or a full campaign, our work is always created with your objectives in mind.
RELENTLESS DRIVE
Sometimes we get a little loud. We stay after hours and we stay up late. We might occasionally argue amongst ourselves, but it all comes back to the relentless intensity that drives the affection we have for our clients.
WINNING RELATIONSHIPS
Great work gets you in the door. Strong relationships built on mutual respect and continued success keep you in the building. We've survived and thrived for nearly two decades by delivering both.
Meet the Team
This is a talented team of diverse ideators, facilitators and more. Use the filters to learn about a few of our quirks.
Zach Beal
SR Account Manager
Caroline Kannapell
Digital Content Manager
Charmayne Fish
SR Account Manager
Carrie Walker
Associate Creative Director
Trent Summers
President
Allison Evans
Account Manager
James Riley, Jr.
Founder, Chairman of the Board
Lydia King
Quality & Compliance Officer
Grace Boese
Art Director
Jamie Young
Digital Marketing Director
Jaimee Holland
Strategy Director
Adam Appleton
Associate Creative Director
Deepa Thapa
Account Coordinator
Jennifer Birk
Traffic & Digital Assets Manager
Elizabeth Pekios
Production Manager/Designer
Sandy Ross
SR Art Director
Holly Dirnberger
SR Art Director/Photographer
Jon Fox
Vice President
Tara Buehler
Project Manager
Drew Wright
Director, Video Services
Whitney Tapley
Digital Art Director
Lindsey Fritsche
Project Coordinator
Demi Sanders
SR Digital Designer
Madison Friend
Video Editor
Rebecca Lambert
Account Manager
Crystal Hill
Chief Financial Officer
Rukhsar Hendricks
Account Coordinator
Oral Friend
Video Editor
Dana Brune
Accounting Manager
Payton Alexander
Account Coordinator
Ross Tilghman
SR Video Editor
Bruce Robert
Principal, Board President
Andy Dunaway
Associate Creative Director
Stuart Knowlan
VP, Creative Director
Gail Rockett
Executive Assistant
Matt Carter
SR Project Manager
Kristen Boren
Producer
Abby Letner
Copywriter
Sydney Antiporek
JR Digital Designer / Content Coordinator
Krista Kluesner
Director, Quality & Compliance
Silvia Kinder
SR Art Director
Sarah DeGroot
SR Digital Art Director
Kinsley Zindel
Project Manager
Ashlynn Collier
Account Coordinator
Laurel Joehl
SR Art Director
Seth Sherman
Director, UX & Product Design
Samantha Lang
Associate VP of Operations
Jessie Renick
VP, Human Resources
Rachael Gast
Accounting Manager
Jennifer Sanders
SR Project Manager
Sheila Bizzell
Operations Manager
Amity Shedd
Copywriter
Tom Carroll
Communications Manager
Makayla Harber
Project Manager
Holly Godwin
Resource Coordinator
Kathy Flanagan
Account Manager
Sami Schulte
Account Coordinator
Brianna Amschler
Production Artist/Designer
Mindy Tumminia
Account Coordinator
Jonathan Gautier
Video Editor / JR Copywriter
Clay Schermann
VP, Strategy & Accounts
Brooke Dohogne-Scherer
Art Director
Lillian Stroup
Account Manager
Evan Webb
Account Manager
Maigon Campbell-Nowlin
HR Strategist
Lauren Essner
Associate VP of Client Relations
Catrina Stewart
Digital Designer
Alyssa Phares
Account Director
Culture & Perks
Work Flexibility
We’re proud of our Mississippi River town of Cape Girardeau. Naturally, that means encouraging all of us to make any space be their workplace.
Full Benefits Package
We offer a 401(k) plan, paid vacations, medical, along with a unique benefit: working with our founder Jim Riley. His enthusiasm is always high and his well for ideas never empty.
Equipment and Resources
Yes, we offer the latest hardware and software for staff, and technology tools like Marketing Cloud for clients. Most importantly, we have the people who know how to use them.
Massages
For our employees, these are monthly. For our clients, they’re here whenever you need them.
Free Eats and Drinks
While we’re always hungry for great ideas, collaborating means never being hangry among ourselves.
Company-Wide Celebrations
Whether it’s a red shoe Tuesday or cult movie in our own big screen theater, we play as hard as we work.