Milwaukee-based Falk Group Public Relations this week announced its merger with Harrisburg, Pennsylvania-based marketing firm Merit.
Falk Group will now operate under the Merit brand name. As part of the merger, which went into effect Jan. 23, Falk Group founder and president Susie Falk will lead Merit's public relations team as director of public relations.
Falk founded the firm in 2008. Its clients represent a cross section of industries including education, health care, nonprofit, retail, biotechnology and pharmaceutical, software and IT, and entertainment and hospitality. Falk Group, now doing business as Merit Midwest, has four employees in Milwaukee and an office location at 424 W. Walnut St. in the city's Halyard Park neighborhood.
The merger expands Merit’s Milwaukee operations and national footprint and adds a host of services to its portfolio, including media relations, influencer marketing, brand journalism, cause and advocacy marketing, investor relations, crisis communications and event planning.
"Susie Falk and her agency’s highly effective PR strategy and execution will serve our clients – current and future – extremely well," said Adam Vasquez, founder and CEO of Merit. "... The Falk Group has a reputation for trust and professionalism. We are excited for the future of our agency and how the merger will add value for our collective clients."
As director of public relations, Falk joins other Milwaukee creative industry leaders who have joined Merit in recent years including Steve Drifka, chief creative officer; Denise Kohnke, chief strategy officer; and Travis Knutson, chief technical officer.
In addition to its Harrisburg headquarters - and its Milwaukee operation - Merit staff is stationed in Washington, D.C., Boston and Cincinnati. The company now has a total of 16 employees.
Merit's services include brand launches, omni-channel creative development, primary and secondary research, and business strategy for funded start-ups and M&A clients.
