AcrobatAnt Building for Long-term Success with New Hires, New Partners

When the calendar flipped to 2020, AcrobatAnt officially began its twelfth year as a full-service advertising and marketing agency — with a whole new look and feel from this time a year ago.

Nine new Ants have joined the team over the past year. Two long-time employees, David Vávra and Bryan Cooper, are now partners assuming greater managerial responsibilities. Vávra, the agency’s controller, is in charge of internal operations, tools, culture and team development in addition to his financial-management duties. Cooper, associate creative director for the past five years, takes over as creative director from partner/founder Danny Sadler, who retired on December 31.

Much of this change was set in motion by the unexpected passing of co-founder and partner Diane Davis last November.

“Diane was the spirit of AcrobatAnt,” says Sadler. “It was a tremendous loss to each of us, personally and professionally. She was absolutely one of a kind, so the idea of ‘replacing’ her was unthinkable because it’s simply impossible.”

Sadler and his fellow partners, Angela Harless and David Downing, knew the best way to honor their friend was to make sure the agency she helped build, and that she was so passionate about, continued to thrive and grow. They began assembling a team that would not only continue supporting the needs of the agency’s existing clientele — which includes long-time clients Saint Francis Health System and Mazzio’s — but also give the company greater ability to compete for business of virtually any size or industry.

That team is now in place. AcrobatAnt’s newest team members include:

• four account managers with experience serving major brands at agencies in New York, Texas and Colorado, as well as the Tulsa market;
• two multitalented graphic designers who add photography and motion-graphics to the agency’s extensive list of in-house capabilities; and
• a seasoned director of website development with deep experience in creating technically efficient and aesthetically pleasing sites for the tourism, education and banking industries, among others.

Downing will continue to lead the agency’s account-service team and manage its brand-architecture process and deliverables, while Harless will transition from account management to strategy and support of all agency clients.

“In any business, succession-planning is an important aspect for long-term viability,” says Downing, a Tulsa advertising veteran of nearly 40 years. “Along with our best-in-class creative, brand planning, media and account service, we’re poised to be able to work with any brand, no matter the size.”

Harless adds that it’s important for the agency’s future to maintain a diverse management team. “Having senior leadership with account service, financial and creative backgrounds keeps the agency well rounded and not skewed toward any one department,” she says. “As I think about the new partnership team, it’s exciting to see four unique but complementary skill sets coming together with the unified purpose of doing great work, helping our clients realize success, and providing an awesome work environment.”

Established in 2008, AcrobatAnt is a full-service advertising and marketing agency that provides strategic planning and execution of marketing and media tactics for clients in a wide range of industries. Offering in-house website and digital development along with graphic design, copywriting, video editing and analytics, AcrobatAnt prides itself on exceeding client expectations with fast project turnaround and a transparent pricing structure. The company’s office is in Tulsa’s Lincoln Plaza, 1336 E. 15^th Street.

For more information, contact Angela Harless at 918-938-7912.