What a wild (and exciting!) 14 months it’s been at Franco!
In January 2024, we celebrated 60 years in business and spent the entire year executing a campaign centered around the people who made Franco who we are today.
Two months later in March 2024, we announced our ownership transition and becoming women owned, which was a personal career highlight and milestone.
Fast forward to less than a year later and I’m so honored to share Franco has acquired Bianchi Public Relations (BPR) – one of the most well-respected PR firms that services the automotive/mobility industry! Jim Bianchi founded the agency in 1992 and built a team of talented professionals who have been long-time employees – ranging from 14 to 29 years.
As part of our growth strategy, we’ve looked at opportunities to align or partner with other agencies over the years. The most important consideration when evaluating these opportunities is our people and culture. Our culture – the relationships we have and how we work together – is what sets us apart.
We have long considered a partnership with Jim and his agency for several reasons…including because we regard them as one of the best agencies that specializes in the auto/mobility industry. Tina Benvenuti Sullivan and I both worked there and have remained close to Jim through the years. We’ve been friendly competitors, often referring business to each other, because we knew we could trust Jim and his team. We’ve long admired the BPR team, the work they do and the long-standing relationships they’ve built with each other and their clients.
In the fall of 2024, the timing was finally right. After several months of due diligence and ensuring that first and foremost this move made sense from a people and culture perspective, we made the acquisition a reality at the end of January 2025!
Franco has achieved strong year-over-year growth for the last several years by remaining committed to a people-first culture, innovation and an integrated approach to client programs, while BPR has maintained a roster of clients that are leaders in the automotive and mobility industry. The acquisition is aligned with our strategy to continue growing with strong talent and client partnerships.
It also aligns with Franco’s core values, particularly Opportunity, Forward Motion and Family+Team+Community. Our values are our north star, and every business decision we make must be aligned with our values.
So, what happens next? BPR’s employees will transition into Franco through a gradual integration that prioritizes client service and the preservation of culture. We’re thrilled to welcome Jim Bianchi, Jessica Muzik, Leslie Clark Dagg, Adriana Van Duyn and Jaclyn Bussert to our team!
BPR’s clients will receive uninterrupted service from their account teams and will have access to our full breadth of integrated communications services.
I’m immensely proud of and thankful to everyone who played a part in getting to where we are today with BPR becoming part of Franco. I am particularly grateful to Jim and his entire team…and of course our Franco team who genuinely approached this was an open mind. Without your commitment and trust, Franco isn’t Franco!
You can read more about the news in this Crain’s Detroit Business article (shout out and thank you to Kurt Nagl for the story!).
Tina Kozak is the CEO of Franco. Connect with her on LinkedIn or contact us to learn more about partnering with Franco.
