LPK (formerly known as Libby, Perszyk, Kathman Inc.) is a brand design and innovation agency headquartered in

Cincinnati, Ohio Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wit ...

. The company is the largest employee-owned brand design agency in the world.

History

LPK’s origins trace back to 1919, when Cliff Schaten started an art studio called C.H. Schaten Studios upon his return to Cincinnati after World War One. In 1959, seven of its employees purchased the company, renaming it Studio Art Associates. During the 1960s and 1970s, the company, which had been renamed Cato Johnson, opened offices in London, Brussels, Geneva, Paris, New York and Toronto. In 1975, Cato Johnson was acquired by advertising firm Young & Rubicam (Y&R), which continued to expand with locations in San Francisco, Hong Kong, São Paulo and Mexico City. In 1983, five Y&R employees—Mort Libby, Ray Perszyk, Jerry Kathman, Howard McIlvain and Jim Gabel—organized a leveraged buyout of the Cincinnati office and renamed the firm Libby, Perszyk, Kathman.^{/sup>

Leadership

From LPK’s founding in 1983 until 1997, the late Mort Libby served as Chief Executive Officer, followed by Jerry Kathman, who served as CEO from 1997 until 2016. In 2015, Executive leadership included Chief Executive Officer Jerry Kathman,^{/sup> Chief Creative Officer Nathan Hendricks, Global Development Officer John Recker, Chief Organizational Officer Phil Best and Chief Financial Officer Dennis Geiger.

In July 2016, the company announced the appointment of LPK’s current chief officers: Chief Executive Officer Sarah Tomes, Chief Financial Officer Brent McCoy and Chief Growth Officer (previously Chief Insight & Innovation Officer), Valerie Jacobs. They joined Chief Creative Officer, Nathan Hendricks. In 2020, Michael Wintrob joined LPK's C-Suite as Chief Strategy Officer. Jerry Kathman now serves as Founder and Chairman of the Board at LPK.

Clients

Clients have included Bayer, Coleman, Expedia, US Bank, P&G, Kellogg’s, Mondelẽz, SUNY and others.

Awards

* Transform Awards North America 2019-Best visual identity from the FMCG sector: Silver- The Mad Optimist
* Transform Awards North America 2019-Best visual identity from the financial services sector: Highly commended- Greater Cincinnati Foundation
* Transform Awards North America 2019-Best brand evolution: Highly commended- The J.M. Smucker Company
*Red Dot

The Red Dot Design Award is a German international design prize awarded by Red Dot GmbH & Co. KG. There are prize categories for product design, brands and communication design, and design concept. Since 1955, designers and producers can apply ...
Award 2013: Coleman Adjustable Comfort Sleeping Bag^{0/sup>
*Global ACE Awards 2014: Sealed Air
* Pentaward 2011: Maker’s 46

References

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Companies established in 1983
Companies based in Cincinnati}}}