Happy 313 Day! There’s no better occasion to reflect on what this city means to Franco – and to me personally – than the holiday that belongs entirely to Detroit.
This one feels a little different for our team. Just a few weeks ago, we moved into our new home at The Palms Building, located in the heart of Detroit’s sports and entertainment district. 313 Day is the perfect opportunity to talk about what this move means.
This move isn’t just a change of address. It’s a statement about who we are, where we come from and what we believe in. And all roads lead back to Detroit.
Rooted Here Since 1964
When Tony Franco founded this agency in 1964, choosing Detroit wasn’t accidental. He was deeply invested in this city, committed to its people, its sports teams and its future, later serving as chair of what is now the Detroit Regional Chamber. Detroit wasn’t just the backdrop for Franco. It was woven into our DNA from day one.
That has always resonated with me, because Detroit is a big part of my story, too.
Like a lot of kids growing up in southeast Michigan in the late ’90s, I was ready to branch out and explore after high school. But a scholarship brought me to Wayne State, and something unexpected happened: I fell in love with Detroit. Not the version people imagined from the outside, but the real one – the people, the grit, the neighborhoods and the sense that something was always building beneath the surface. By the time I graduated college, the city had re-anchored me.
Years later, working in the corporate world, I realized what I was missing. I was tracking industry news out of Geneva before I knew what was happening in my own backyard. I missed being connected to the community I had grown to love.
So, when I started looking for my next chapter, I wasn’t just looking for a job – I was looking for Detroit. Franco was the right fit, and the fact that we were rooted here was the number one reason I walked through the door back in 2007. It’s also a big part of why I stayed and ultimately became an owner.
As a third-generation Detroit business owner, following my grandfather’s east-side grocery store in the ’50s and ’60s and my dad’s auto repair shops in the ’80s, keeping Franco in this city was never a question. It was always the only answer.
A Space That Matches Our Energy
When it came time to write the next chapter for Franco, we explored options all across the city. When we found The Palms Building, we knew we were home.
I kept telling our broker: if we’re going to invest in a space, it has to be one our team deserves. Franco is an integrated communications firm with six decades of history and a lot of energy. We love to collaborate, celebrate, create and innovate. Our people are really cool – and it was time our address reflected that again. As a women-owned agency, it also felt right that we turned to two women-led businesses to bring the space to life: Our dedicated brokers at and innovative designers from Pophouse.
The Palms Building has real architectural character and history, and it sits right in the middle of the action – steps from Woodward, the Fox Theatre and the brand-new headquarters of Huntington and Little Caesars. We’re joining a building full of other creative companies, which feels exactly right.
For years, I drew inspiration from the Detroit Riverfront at the Ren Cen. Now I’m excited to draw energy from the streets, the people and everything happening around us.
The space truly feels like us, and we can’t wait to welcome clients and friends soon.
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Our Responsibility to This Region
We don’t just work in Detroit. This is our place, and we feel a responsibility – and a genuine calling – to play a role in its economic and cultural momentum.
That shows up in our work for clients every day.
- We’re proud to partner with the Detroit Regional Partnership, whose mission is to attract and grow businesses across the region.
- We recently supported NEI’s small business initiative, helping amplify the work being done to lift up Detroit entrepreneurs.
- And we sponsored the 2026 Detroit Policy Conference because investing in the conversations shaping this region’s future is important to us.
When new companies come to Detroit, we help them show up in a way that feels authentic here. We don’t take a one-size-fits-all approach because we know what it means to be genuinely rooted in an understanding of this community.
Telling Detroit’s story, officially and unofficially, is just something we do. We can’t help it. We know what we have here, and we want everyone else to know it, too.
Detroit Inspires Me – Now More Than Ever
For years, “Detroit Inspires Me” has been more than a tagline for us – it’s a genuine expression of how this city fuels our work and our people. We’ve celebrated it through a video series, blog posts and community spotlights featuring voices from Governor Whitmer to local entrepreneurs and creatives. It has always been part of who we are.
This 313 Day, we’re reinvigorating the Detroit Inspires Me brand in a new way. We’re launching our first-ever Detroit Inspires Me merchandise collection, and 100% of Franco’s profits will be donated to Alternatives For Girls, a Detroit-based nonprofit that empowers homeless and at-risk young women by providing critical intervention and support.
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This is just the beginning! More is coming – more stories, more ways to celebrate and more ways to put our love for this city into action.
Shop the Detroit Inspires Me collection at franco.com/shop. We can’t wait to see your Detroit pride on social media or out and about in the city we love so much.
We’re lucky to call Detroit home today and every day.
Tina Kozak is Owner and CEO at Franco. Connect with her on LinkedIn.
