Gelia, Western New York's largest marketing communications agency, today announced the opening of a new regional office in Peoria, Ill. Gelia's Peoria office will be anchored by Nick Jibben, creative director, and Sandy Beelman, senior account executive. Both are former principals at Ross Creative + Strategy in Peoria.

"At Gelia, we are aggressively looking for opportunities to market our full suite of integrated marketing communications offerings supported by research and strategic planning, and these services are already growing in demand as the economic recovery gains momentum," said Jamey Phipps, President & CEO of Gelia. "We have thoroughly evaluated the market potential and talent available here, and we see Peoria as a key center for growth in the Midwest."

Jibben has nearly 20 years' experience providing strategic and creative leadership on many successful brand and rebrand launches, earning more than 200 regional and national awards and inclusion in several design annuals. He has a bachelor of science degree in graphic design from Illinois State University.

Over the past two decades, Beelman has spearheaded a variety of strategic planning, marketing research, branding, and integrated communications efforts for a variety of business-to-business, business-to-consumer and non-profit accounts.

Founded in 1961, Gelia is a full-service agency specializing in strategic marketing communications that drive integrated campaigns with measurable results. The agency supports a nationwide client base with strategic planning, advertising, public relations, new media, direct marketing, market research, and Web site architecture and design. With $52.5 million in annual capitalized billings, Gelia is headquartered in Williamsville, N.Y. and also operates offices in Peoria, Ill. and Toledo, Ohio. More information is available at www.gelia.com.

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