Bailey Gardiner - San Diego Advertising, Public Relations, Media, Interactive, Design

I love the agency business because no two days are alike. And given my attention span, that's a groove that works well for me. When I majored in Mass Communications at UC Berkeley, I got my first taste of agency life as an intern in a boutique San Francisco shop working on California Cooler and the California Milk Advisory Board. I fell hard for the creative jolt I got from bringing new ideas and marketing approaches to clients that appreciated good work.

Creativity has always been at the core of what we do. And building Bailey Gardiner with Indra has been a joy because we both aspire to the same creative vision. It hasn't grown without our share of blood, sweat and tears, but the upside is loving what we do. Loving the people we work with. And loving what we make for our clients. Not a bad deal.

Today, I'm excited to be in this industry because it's a whole new world. I'm bringing ideas and approaches to clients every day that use new digital, mobile and experiential media. It's all about mash-ups and the fun of combining neo-traditional with old school.

Actually, I'm kind of a mash–up myself — past president of PRSA, current board member of AdClub and LEAD San Diego — so, I guess, traditional boundaries have always meant little to me. Did I mention that I love this business?

Straight out of college, I went to work for the Marriott Corporation. I protested that I wasn't a blue suit-type of gal, but my advisor said the training was tops. It was and I wasn't. So after more than five years of corporate life, learning hotels and restaurants inside and out, I moved over to PR at a small agency.

Learned a lot at the agency and worked on accounts that really planted me in San Diego — like the 75th anniversary of the San Diego Zoo and the opening of Dick's Last Resort (before the Gaslamp was cool).

Went out on my own, but that fun lasts only so long. Days without human contact is not good and pajamas are not really work attire. So Jon and I opened Bailey Gardiner and it's been a long, winding road of clients, staff, meetings, office spaces and brand evolutions. I've been involved in so many hotel and restaurant openings that I've lost count.

What gets me most excited now is online and digital. I'm learning a ton, sharing with our crew and figuring out where it fits for clients. I sit on the board of the National Conflict Resolution Center and Sushi (a center for the urban arts), which should tell you a little about what I think is important.

Starting my PR career while still in college gave me the benefit of learning very early on that I'm the type of person who has to work on clients and in industries I'm passionate about. Quite simply, I'm an energetic and passionate person who is a straight shooter. I can fake it, but prefer not to.

After ten years in the business I'm as passionate and energetic about my work as ever. With a background in wine, luxury goods, hospitality, travel destinations and technology, my experience is vast, but so are the types of media, clients and strategies I lead.

As part of a continuously evolving agency I challenge myself to keep my fingers on the pulse of our industry — especially social and digital media — so that I can consistently share things I've learned with our team. I know the key to any agency's success is having a team of people who are constantly inspired, challenged and learning. After all, isn't that why we all got into this business in the first place?

I came to Bailey Gardiner for the weather. Let’s be honest, San Diego is way cooler than my previous gig in Atlanta! Okay, so the agency had its many perks and cool, creative people too. After all, I spend more time with them than I do my own family.

My advertising story began way back in sixth grade when I took a career assessment. The results were 50/50 that I should pursue a career in Graphic Design or become the President of the United States. I figure Account Planning and Management is a pretty good mix of the two.

I have worked with some of the best creative minds and strategic thinkers on the East and West Coasts that have kept me pretty inspired. My agency experience includes Kleber Advertising, Summit Marketing, and my very own creative shop, The Personette Group. Okay, so this is tooting my own horn: In 2005, I received a Promo Award for my efforts in guerilla and experiential marketing. Saying that never gets old! Some of my client experience includes Lowe’s Home Improvement, Recall, Arch Chemicals, Korbel, and Kellogg. I love integrated marketing and have led B2B and consumer campaigns both nationally and globally.

In my spare time, I have an obsession with dachshunds, Diet Dr Pepper and Bombay Sapphire. My lifelong dream is to strategize an ad campaign that incorporates all three. Any takers?

I came to Bailey Gardiner to make a difference.

Yeah, everybody says that, but having worked at big agencies like J. Walter Thompson and Ogilvy, I realized that it was the smaller shops that mattered most. Places like Kirshenbaum Bond and Partners in San Francisco and my time freelancing at Crispin + Porter when they were one floor in an office building in Coconut Grove, Florida. The smaller clients were hungrier and willing to try new things. They made us think harder. It was more about big ideas and less about big budgets. Don't get me wrong, being a Creative Director on Cisco's worldwide business taught me a lot about multimillion dollar budgets, private jets and Pytka shoots (ask me about those sometime), but I missed the high-fives in the hallway when we won a new client. Or exceeded their wildest expectations. Or when we simply heard the words, “good job”.

I wouldn't trade my experience working on established brands like Cisco, Nestle, Motorola or Dewar's (especially Dewar's) for the world, but now, it's just time to make a difference.

I first stumbled upon advertising in college. When I realized I'd found a profession where I could combine my artistic sensibilities and nutty sense of humor and actually get paid for it, I was hooked. And I've spent the last ten years in the business doing just that.

When I came to Bailey Gardiner I was looking to work at an agency where I could take creativity to new heights and, in turn, help put San Diego on the advertising map. Fallon did it in Minneapolis a long time ago, why couldn't we do it here?

My experience on brands such as Discovery Channel, American Gourmet Foods, and World of Good have taught me to keep your eye on the idea and the money will follow. And people fall in love with ideas.

Since then, I've used my expertise to help create campaigns for a whole bunch of Bailey Gardiner clients including Point Loma Outfitting, Seaport Village and Beauty Encounter. I look forward to working with new clients and creating exciting new campaigns that will push the limits of my creative abilities.