With half of 2015 already over (no way, right?) here are some updates on a whirlwind six months at Backbone Media.
We took a company “Charge” down the Numbers section of the Arkansas River and spent the day rafting and camping.
We brought 10 new employees on board — for comparisons sake, in 2014 we hired 13 new employees total.
The Charge
A sunny day in June. A raging river. And 20 cases of beer.
Topped off with camping in the Sawatch range, BBQ, an enthusiastic game of dice and a massive bonfire.
New Faces:
As a growing agency we hired two notable names in order to expand and develop new services. Sam Bass joins Backbone as Editor and Content Director and Charlie Lozner joins the team as Director of Integrated Services. Both will be based in our Carbondale headquarters.
Charlie Lozner (left) was previously the Director of Marketing for Outdoor Research — the media team worked closely with Lozner as Outdoor Research is one of our clients. Lozner will help bridge our suite of services and offer clients the most integrated results possible across PR, media planning and content.
Sam Bass (right) joins Backbone after 12 years at Skiing Magazine where he was Editor-in-Chief. A longtime friend of Backbone, Bass will help Backbone develop content solutions for our existing clients.
On the public relations side two new hires will help drive the agency forward for some of our new clients.
Brittany Hodill (left) joins Backbone from New Zealand (and previous to that, San Francisco). Hodill brings with her knowledge of the technology and lifestyle space after working for clients like FitBit, Visa and Beats by Dre.
Eric “Hende” Henderson (right) joins Backbone as a Senior PR Account Manager —Hende was previously the communications manager at Salewa North America and before that he spent five years at Denny, Ink. Hende is also a culinary institute trained chef, farm-to-table caterer, and hard-charging skier.
On the media side, an additional media planner, two media coordinators and a media intern bolster the growing team. Scott Warren joins Backbone as a media planner; Scott was previously at Travel Oregon as an insight and planning manager based out of Portland. Scott informed us that Carbondale actually has more bikes and breweries per capita than Portland, so he should feel right at home.
Two new media coordinators have joined Backbone, both of them recent Colorado College graduates (the Colorado College takeover is in full swing, as seven of our employees have graduated from the school). Nick Pinto (left) and Patrick Lynch (right) will provide support for the growing media team.
Interns. Backbone has three interns these days — providing support across both PR and media.
On the PR side, Philip Chambers (left) is a recent graduate of Columbia University— Chambers is an avid climber psyched to get out of NYC. Celine Wright, another recent Colorado College grad originally from Telluride, CO, is bringing support and social media skills. Connor Jackson joins as a media intern — Jackson is a Roaring Fork Valley native.
And on that note, we’re also hiring! Backbone is in need of an Office Manager for our Carbondale office, and a PR account manager who is thoroughly involved in the hunt/fish space. Apply here.