GRAND RAPIDS, Mich.,
April 24, 2014 /PRNewswire/ --
Building on its position as Michigan's leading PR firm, Lambert, Edwards
& Associates (LE&A) today announced it has acquired
Lansing, Mich.-based public policy
and issues management firm Sterling Corporation. The move
bolsters LE&A's public affairs practice and establishes it as
the largest PR firm in the state's capital and the largest public
affairs firm in Michigan.
"We see no better place to invest than Michigan, and no better opportunity than the
rapidly evolving and increasingly influential legislative arena,"
said Jeff Lambert, president and
managing partner of LE&A.
Best known for its public policy, issues management and issue
advocacy work, Sterling Corporation offers comprehensive campaign
management, grassroots/grasstops advocacy, ballot initiatives,
integrated marketing and crisis management. It is also the
state's leading fundraising consultancy. Sterling was founded
in 1999 and has clients across the state and throughout the country
spanning corporations, associations, coalitions and non-profits
seeking to influence public policy and advocate on behalf of their
issues and campaigns.
"We have more corporate clients than any PR firm in Michigan and now have the deepest and broadest
bench in the public affairs and legislative arena," Lambert added.
"We look forward to adding the public education, issues
management and grassroots mobilization track record of Sterling to our service offering and extending
our current public affairs reach to companies and campaigns looking
to advance legislation from Lansing to the Beltway and back."
Sterling will remain a separate
company and continue to operate under its existing brand, led by
Managing Partner Steve Linder and Partner and Political Director
Mark Pischea, while benefiting from
the added resources, team and national reach of LE&A.
LE&A said the addition of Sterling represents an approximate 20%
increase in revenues and staff to the state's top statewide PR firm
and will be a catalyst for more work in Lansing and statewide. Terms of the deal
were not disclosed.
"This combination strengthens our leadership in Lansing and expands the services we can offer
clients – services such as digital and social media, consumer and
national media and messaging, and investor relations and corporate
communications," said Steve
Linder. "While the issues we shape are often regional,
our clients are increasingly global and demand more resources and
an integrated approach that mirrors their scale. We believe
LE&A, with their statewide offices and national-caliber talent,
represent the ideal partner to complement our legislative acumen
and access."
LE&A's acquisition of Sterling is the firm's fifth acquisition and
second-largest since its 2009 acquisition of John Bailey & Associates, which marked the
firm's entry into Lansing and the
public affairs sector. LE&A has posted 15 straight years
of growth and serves clients based in 20 states and six countries
from its offices in downtown Grand
Rapids, Lansing and
Detroit.
About Lambert, Edwards & Associates
LE&A (www.lambert-edwards.com) is a top-10 Midwest-based PR
firm and a top-20 investor relations firm nationally with clients
based in 20 states and six countries. As Michigan's only
statewide PR firm – with offices in Grand
Rapids, Lansing and
Detroit – LE&A serves
middle-market companies and national brands across a wide array of
industries and is the state's largest bipartisan public affairs
firm. LE&A has posted 15 years of growth, been named
PR Week and PRNews Small Firm of the Year, honored as
an Edward Lowe "Michigan 50
Companies to Watch," and earned Crain's "Michigan's Healthiest Employers" and "Coolest
Places to Work" awards. LE&A is also a global partner in
PROI Worldwide, the largest partnership of independent PR firms in
the world spanning 120 cities on five continents. Follow us
on Twitter @LambertEdwards.
SOURCE Lambert, Edwards & Associates