After 20 years of making Michigan a better place through its nationally recognized public relations and advocacy work, Martin Waymire today announced it is rebranding as Bellwether Public Relations, signifying a new chapter for the agency under partners Josh Hovey, APR, Angela Minicuci, APR, and Andie Poole, APR, who purchased the business in 2022.
“Michigan is known as a bellwether state for presidential elections, economic changes, culture shifts, environmental policies and more, and we wanted our new name to include a nod to our roots and acknowledge our work at the intersection of public relations and public policy,” said Poole.
Martin Waymire was founded in Lansing, Michigan in 2004 by award-winning journalists turned public relations practitioners, Roger Martin, APR, and David Waymire. The agency has a long track record of effectively managing public relations, digital strategy and advocacy campaigns for small to large corporations, coalitions and associations in industries and policy areas including health care, public health, utilities and energy, technology, insurance, casino gaming, K-12 and higher education, public transportation, local, county and state governments, the beverage industry and more.
“Dave and I built Martin Waymire with a focus on making Michigan a better place, and we’re proud to see the next generation carry forward that vision with such energy, talent and purpose,” Martin said. “Bellwether Public Relations remains rooted in the agency’s powerful legacy but stands ready to make an even greater impact in the future in Michigan and beyond.”
In May, the agency won the nation’s top award for public relations excellence, the Silver Anvil, for its work with the Michigan EITC Coalition to expand the state’s earned income tax credit to a 30% match of the federal credit, alongside clients Michigan Future, Inc., the Michigan League for Public Policy and the Michigan Consensus Policy Project. The award marked the firm’s third Silver Anvil in the past five years and the sixth Silver Anvil won by its team. The company won a Silver Anvil in 2019 for its work with Voters Not Politicians on Proposal 2, the grassroots, nonpartisan campaign to end partisan gerrymandering in Michigan, and in 2020 for its work on the I Vaccinate campaign encouraging parents to protect their children from vaccine-preventable diseases.
With 18 professional communicators and support staff, Bellwether Public Relations is headquartered in downtown Lansing but works with clients across Michigan and the United States. Learn more at bellwetherpr.com.