Staff Spotlight

At LeDuc Creative, we believe “Creative Human Capital” is the backbone of digital marketing and advertising. Today, we want to highlight two members of our digitally driven staff who work tirelessly to bring our clients into the 21st century:

Lauren Maier, Resource Manager
“My background is in education; however, after teaching for six years, moving to Indiana and bringing our daughter into the world, it was time to change directions. I became the Resource Manager for LeDuc Creative, which has allowed me to expand my comfort levels and put my skills to the test, all while staying at home with my daughter, Penelope.

“I have watched LeDuc Creative grow for over twenty years, and I am proud of where we are today. There is no such thing as a typical day, as each one brings new excitement. I work behind the scenes to ensure all data and resources are accurate and up-to-date. There is never a dull moment at LeDuc Creative, and I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

Jacob Hollenbeck, Graphic Designer
“I’m a graphic designer who enjoys helping small businesses thrive in a world dominated by corporate commerce. I take pride in getting to know the clients I work with, and I value the relationships I build over the course of a project.

“I have a degree in graphic design from Ferris State University and have been designing for LeDuc Creative since 2013. With an emphasis on problem solving and communication, my design process ensures that a company’s audience hears them clearly. Ultimately, my work helps clients bolster their business and strengthen their brand.”

About LeDuc Creative
Located in the heart of Ann Arbor, LeDuc Creative has been doing traditional, digital, and analytical advertising and marketing for over 35 years. We represent the best of traditional advertising and 21st century marketing, combining data-driven marketing strategies and cutting edge advertising techniques to serve our clients in a variety of ways.

For more information about LeDuc services and our “Creative Human Capital,” please visit http://leduccreative.us/.

A Brief History of LeDuc Creative

In 1972, John LeDuc took a job as a sign painter. He was commissioned to paint the outfield fence of the softball field in Lapeer, Michigan. The image was the Big Boy logo, but instead of holding a cheeseburger, he was holding a softball mitt and catching a fly ball. It was this job that would inspire John to pursue a career in advertising.

John went on to art school, but continued painting signs for Lapeer during summer breaks. While in school, he started painting album covers and when he graduated, John was offered a job as an illustrator for General Motors.

After a year at GM, John went back to Ann Arbor where he opened a studio making T-shirts and signs. It was here that John picked up his first client, Collected Works. Collected Works is LeDuc’s longest standing client and John remains good friends with the store’s owners Rich and Irene.

Eventually, John got married and moved to a location on Dewey St. with an art studio on the first floor. While working at Douglas Anderson Advertising, John LeDuc met John Benson. When Doug Anderson told Benson and LeDuc they would never amount to anything, the pair left the company to start their own competing agency, Benson LeDuc Studios. Over time, Benson LeDuc grew from a two man boutique studio to a 22 man agency with 5 Industrial accounts, a woman’s clothing store, a couple of bars and restaurants and 23 Taubman Shopping Centers.

In 1987, John moved to 1400 White St. where JLeDuc Co was born. The office was located in a studio built above the garage and John’s wife Julaine wouldn’t let people that she didn’t like into the house. Family friends “Peanut” and Michelle joined John as office administrators and project managers. Bill deMink (John’s brother-in-law) started working as a freelance writer and still remains with the company to this day.

In 1999, JLeDuc Co. was purchased and the company name was changed to Ideography. In 2001 John left Ideography to create LeDuc Creative Co., a creative consulting firm. By 2003 LeDuc Creative had transformed into a full service ad agency and the accounts from Ideography began to migrate over to LeDuc Creative Co.

Since 2003, LeDuc Creative Co. has transformed from a traditional ad agency to digital marketing and advertising company. LeDuc Creative has undergone many changes over the past five decades, but reflecting back on the past leaves John with nothing but optimism for the future. “Here I am at the ripe ol’ age of 60, enjoying advertising as much as ever,” John noted, “As my minister brother used to say: I can’t be knocked down, you can’t take away my joy, you can’t be beat me, because I got God on my side.”