Clients, reporters, friends and employees gathered at the Napa Valley Grille in Westwood last Wednesday to celebrate the first year of Olmstead Williams Communications, a business-to-business public relations firm born this past September. The champagne and artisan chocolate affair was a great success, topped off with a book signing by Susie Norris who just released “Chocolate Bliss” through Random House/Celestial Arts.
Susie Norris, left, artisan chocolatier and author of 'Chocolate Bliss,' just out from Random House/Celestial Arts, shares cacao nibs (perfectly roasted cocoa beans separated from their husks and broken into small bits) with Anne Reifenberg, center, of Bloomberg News and Robbin Itkin, right, a partner at Steptoe & Johnson, as John Hanley, also a partner at Steptoe, looks on. Olmstead Williams Communications provided complimentary copies of the book which Norris signed during the agency’s one-year anniversary, billed as its “Chocolate Anniversary,” at the Napa Valley Grille in Westwood last Wednesday.
Starting a company as the country headed into a recession has proven to be a smart decision for Tracy Williams, president and founder of OWC.
“Entrepreneurs will tell you a recession is a great time to start a business, and they are right,” Williams said. “From negotiating leases and payroll services to office furniture and computer hardware and software, we have taken full advantage of recessionary pricing. In addition, as a tech savvy group, we saved money with outsourcing all of our data storage and exchange server functions into cloud computing platforms and created our Web site using content management software and blog services which make updates easy and inexpensive.
“But I must say that it was the good will of so many people I’ve worked with over the entirely of my career that really set us on a successful path. Clients, a great referral network of people who wanted to see us succeed, and photographers, event planners, even our lawyer, banker and accountant were instrumental in our success. Much is owed to these friends.”
Williams and her staff gave thanks to those friends during the party which was billed as the firm’s “Chocolate Anniversary.”
(L-R) Leslie DaCruz, executive director of communications and marketing at the USC Viterbi School of Engineering; Beth Karmin and her husband Ken Karmin, president and chairman of Ortho Mattress; Bill Allen, president & CEO of the Los Angeles Economic Development Corporation (LAEDC); and Tracy Williams, president and founder of Olmstead Williams Communications, celebrate the one-year anniversary of the business-to-business PR firm with more than 65 colleagues and friends during an event at the Napa Valley Grille in Westwood last Wednesday.
Robert Ward, novelist; Jon P. Goodman, PhD., President, Town Hall Los Angeles; Christian Williams, writer/producer and husband of Tracy Williams; and Farida Fattouhi, President, Reality2 LLC.
(L-R) Sharona Justman, Step Strategy Advisors; Cheryl Calhoun, CBIZ; Julie Lytle; and Sara Feinbloom, filmmaker/documentarian.
(L-R) Jay Cooper of Greenberg Traurig and wife Daurice; Tracy Williams; AnnMarie Newman and film composer husband, Thomas Newman.
(L-R) Lisa McAndrews; Tracy Williams; and Richard McAndrews, President and CEO, KRW/SESCO Investigation Services.
(L-R): Francine DuBois; and Kamran Pourzanjani, CEO, Bestcovery.com
Author of 'Chocolate Bliss' and artesan chocolatier Susie Norris (second from left) shares a laugh with OWC team members, (L-R) Amy Punt; Ashton Uytengsu; Tracy Williams; and Trent Freeman.
