The Announcement Comes as Part of a Succession Plan for Agency’s Next Chapter of Growth
ST. LOUIS, November 16, 2023 – St. Louis-based brand strategy and creative agency UPBrand has announced the promotion of McKenzie Telthorst to President, representing a new phase of business maturity for the agency. As President, Telthorst will focus her activities on leading the agency and providing guidance to key clients.
“UPBrand is honored to have grown over the past 14 years to become a prominent player in St. Louis’ creative service industry. Applying to our firm the same planning methods we recommend to clients, we created a multi-year strategic plan focused on developing people and our business for future success,” said UPBrand Founding Partner Jeff Insco. “It’s extraordinarily gratifying to transcend to a new phase and implement our succession plan from a place of strength. I couldn’t be more proud to make UPBrand a woman-led agency with McKenzie at the helm.”
With Telthorst as President, Founding Partner Jeff Insco will remain with the company in a leadership capacity. His role will evolve to focus on providing strategic counsel to key clients while championing UPBrand’s strategic plan – with an emphasis on geographic expansion to the West Coast.
“I’m looking forward to leading UPBrand’s ongoing evolution as we continue to forge a path to what’s next,” said Telthorst. “Being responsible for the health of an agency and developing the people within it is a huge undertaking, but I’m excited to continue leading UPBrand’s vision of commanding respect for our work, culture and impact by focusing on services and relationships that drive the most success and fulfillment for our team and clients.”
Throughout more than a decade at UPBrand, Telthorst has invented processes and tools that have helped the agency better manage their business which has led to positive year-over-year growth for the last four years and a 150% staff growth since she started at UPBrand.
Telthorst, a graduate of the University of Missouri – Columbia, has almost two decades experience in client service and strategy. She has built a strong reputation for partnering with her clients and helping them overcome their biggest challenges with thoughtful, insight-driven solutions.
She began her career at The Marketing Arm in Dallas before moving to St. Louis and joining Moosylvania as an Account Coordinator where she spent the next five years gaining experience in the art of client service, budget management and project execution.
In 2012, she joined UPBrand where she quickly rose through the ranks from Project Manager to Senior Brand Manager before taking on an additional digital strategy role in 2014, when she created a new department for the agency.
In 2016, Telthorst was promoted to Vice President of Brand Management where she was responsible for providing strategic oversight on client relationships and activities, while developing a team of Brand Managers and digital strategy experts.
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About UPBrand
Founded in 2010 by Jeff Insco and investment partner Keith Alper, UPBrand continues its journey toward being a long-term, sustainable branding and advertising agency that’s respected for its work, culture and impact. Headquartered in St. Louis, UPBrand’s mission is to build brands and business results through strategy-driven creative. It counts blue chip brands from the St. Louis region and across the U.S. among its clients. Believing in the power of true collaboration, UPBrand’s average client relationships last double the industry average.
Learn more: upbrand.com
Media Contact:
Leigh Walters Communications, LLC
leighw@lwc-stl.com
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