CGPR, a marketing communications agency based in Marblehead, is celebrating its 30th anniversary this year. Over the past three decades, CGPR has worked with major global brands including Adidas and Moosejaw.
FCGPR founder and President Chris Ann Goddard said she began the agency all those years ago because she wanted to work with clients that represent things that she loves.
“The clients that we work with are footwear, apparel, fitness, ski resorts, technologies, so it’s anything that propels that active consumer lifestyle and the technology that’s behind it,” she said.
Goddard has been working in public relations for about 40 years.
Her career begins in Washington D.C., where she was a lobbyist for the New York City Mayor Ed Koch. She then moved to New York City to work in economic development for Koch in City Hall.
“Then [I] went to the PR side, joining larger PR firms in New York,” Goddard said. “So [I] really started my career for the first seven or eight years in public affairs and government relations and working on The Hill, so it’s a really good foundation for the agency world,”
When deciding where to base CGPR, she knew it should be Marblehead.
“I came right to Marblehead because of the fact that it’s gorgeous, there’s a ton of sailing here, and the rest of history,” Goddard said.
Since the inception of CGPR, Goddard said the communications relations industry has changed a lot. Over time, they have had to adapt to the digital age through sponsored content and collaboration with influencers.
“The world has gone to digital and we really didn’t have a choice in doing that, so to stay on top of everything and stay on top of the trends and meet our clients demands we have to have those services in order to provide them with what they were looking for,” Goddard said.
One big accomplishment Goddard mentioned was working with Adidas in launching Adidas Terrex, the outdoors sector of the company. CGPR also played a major role in a high-profile event for one of the company’s athletes.
“Adidas Outdoor had planned to support its athlete Kevin Jorgeson’s attempt to free climb the most difficult route on the Dawn Wall in Yosemite with Patagonia brand ambassador Tommy Caldwell via social media,” CGPR’s website said.
It turned into a human interest story, she said, and CGPR was dealing with large media attention for it.
“CGPR managed the media feeding frenzy onsite, dealing with over 20 satellite trucks from outlets around the world, fielded requests from media 24/7 for 4 days straight. CGPR also worked closely with the National Park Service, organized requests and filming for every single U.S. morning show, in addition to networks including ABC, NBC, CBS, FOX, NPR and CNN, and the BBC, among others,” the website said.
Working with Adidas on both of those campaigns were some of the company’s “iconic” achievements, she said.
For the future, Goddard said she just wants to continue doing good work for CGPR clients.
“Sometimes people think of communications that you have to be in New York or you have to be in the city to succeed,” Goddard said. “You don’t have to be in a big city and we’ve been able to thrive in Marblehead.”