Robbie Richardson has always been drawn to aesthetics, typography and design which is why he enjoys the opportunity to fill the spaces around him with art through the practical lens of marketing, advertising and commercial design.

“Art was always presented to me as more of a hobby or luxury with no bearing on the real world. That is, until I got into graphic design. Everything we use is designed by someone, and I want to make sure that design is full of creativity and imagination.”

Robbie immerses himself into the branding of each client he works with so his art is a reflection of the client’s business model and personality.

Mike Reynolds enjoys the “wow” reaction he gets from clients when he shows off their new website, so he does his best to stay on the front end of web development.

“For the most part, every client I’ve met with has been really excited — I think they see the value of a fresh website. When they get really excited it motivates me and makes me feel like I’m working not only for Mabus, but for each of our clients.”

He works hard with the Mabus Agency development team to plan and program websites that lead the way in online design and interactivity.

As a writer and storyteller, JB Clark believes in the power of words and, more importantly, messaging. Using his seven years of experience in the world of newspapers and magazines, he searches for relevance and context—platforms on which to present messaging.

“Everyone has a story to tell. Communicating that story effectively and through the right avenues is the difference between success and misunderstanding.”

As content director, JB’s goal is finding the social relevance of a company, product or brand; converting it into conversations among community members, stakeholders and consumers; and then guiding that conversation through various media. 

Captivating photography is a vital asset in building a brand. In an industry crowded with bland stock photos, stimulating imagery can set your institution apart with just one glance. Kamau is always looking for ways to add freshness where it’s least expected, which makes him a perfect fit for Mabus Agency.

“Whatever I’m photographing, I want to make it new every time, especially when it comes to portraits. For Mabus Agency, that means blurring the line between corporate and artistic aesthetics to take pictures with depth and drama—pictures that reach out and grab someone just walking by.”

Kamau’s eye is artistic as well as accessible, honed by his unique blend of commercial experience and fine arts education. He constantly pushes his own boundaries to produce pieces that engage our clients’ audiences.

Sarah ensures Mabus Agency’s creative work gets results—on TV, radio, web, billboards, in print, or any other medium. While brainstorming a new campaign, Sarah helps identify each piece’s intended audience as well as the best ways to reach that audience.

My job is to build a media plan that is as good as the creative we design for it. I get excited when I see our work ‘in the wild,’ like when our ads catch me off guard while I’m scrolling on my phone or streaming TV shows.

Sarah’s sharp communication skills and meticulous nature make her perfect for her role as media director.

For Krista, the medium is the message. She specializes in aligning design with distribution, and she connects Mabus Agency’s creative work with media outlets of all forms.

“My role is like a conductor—everyone else is here to put on the show, but I help make it all harmonize with a strategy.”

Krista knows she’s done her job well when she encounters Mabus Agency’s creative work outside of the office. She loves being the first to see creative content and takes pride in making sure Mabus Agency campaigns find their perfect audience.

Matt is always evolving and challenging himself. This is why he chose to leave a successful career in web development to pursue the craft of motion graphics, a field he’d secretly been drawn to for years. He learned quickly, honing his skills in design, layout, and animation. His online reel caught our attention. 

“The first time I saw the opening credits animation for ‘Game of Thrones,’ I knew it was the kind of thing I wanted to make. It caught my attention when I didn’t expect it. Animation lets you combine data, visuals, and narrative to communicate something valuable.”

Motion graphics work is as laborious as it is dynamic. Matt’s abilities exponentially increase Mabus Agency’s capacity to produce work that makes a long-lasting impression on our clients and their customers. 

Dave came to Mabus Agency after an impressive career as senior content strategist at BB&T and program manager of content strategy at H&R Block. He’s worked at every level of financial marketing and is an expert at creating compelling bank marketing content.

“I enjoy getting into copy, helping to craft and shape it with the goal of making it the best it can be. Formulating strategies to get the right content to the right audience in the right medium is a fun challenge.”

Dave plays a crucial role on Mabus Agency’s content creation team, developing financially-focused pieces that are innovative and creative without losing their simplicity and accessibility. With his editorial eye, Dave helps tighten Mabus Agency’s branding efforts with a laser-like focus. 

Jordan has always loved the tactile aspect of making art, from the feedback of charcoal on a fresh page in her sketchbook to the satisfaction of pulling a photographic print from developing fluid in a darkroom. As a graphic design student at Mississippi State University, she became interested in how art and design manifest themselves differently from one medium to another.

“I like the idea of being behind ordinary things that people see every day. You know you’ve made something good when it makes a person pay attention to a thing they would usually take for granted.”

At Mabus Agency, Jordan helps bring fledgling ideas into full focus in a project’s conceptualization phase. By building, tweaking, and refining those ideas, Jordan helps bring out the true spirit of our campaigns and projects.

 In middle school, Chris fell in love with the big, bold art of comic books and video games, and he admired guerrilla street artists like Shepard Fairey. For Chris, typography bridged the gap between organic art like graffiti and mainstream graphic design. The spirit of his work is to merge the styles in a compelling way that is still accessible to the masses.

“It’s almost never good to be the same as everybody else. We make things here that are memorable, and for something to be memorable, it has to be just a little bit uncomfortable. I like finding out where that line is.”

Following a graphic design career in the corporate banking world, he brings institutional knowledge along with his creativity as our production designer.

Laura has her hand in everything around the office, and she’s crucial to keeping Mabus Agency organized. Spot logs, media placement, and spreadsheets are her game.

“What I do is really straightforward. Maybe in itself this stuff doesn’t sound exciting, but they’re things that, in a really concrete way, have to be done. I get a sense of accomplishment out of that.”

A stickler for details and deadlines, Laura is hardly ever sitting down in the office. She constantly moves from department to department following up on tasks and making sure they get done.

Brandie’s experience runs the gamut of the accounting world—from real estate to government contracting to the automobile industry. With degrees in both accounting and marketing, she’s a double threat and a versatile team member at Mabus Agency, where she works to streamline our back office functions and keep track of our cash flow.

“I just like numbers. I like giving things structure, so that everything has a place and gets treated properly. It’s crucial for keeping our practices consistent from project to project.”

Having worked in various highly regulated industries, Brandie is comfortable in the financial world. She’s adept at establishing processes that help Mabus Agency and our clients get the most out of every penny.

An expert in digital marketing, Kate watches our clients’ websites to see what their customers are doing. Then she forms a strategy based on those interactions, customer interests, and specific details that internet search algorithms find valuable.

“‘Spray-and-pray’ email marketing is a thing of the past. Using this data is like a chess game—predicting customer behavior to give them what they want, when they want it.”

Kate excels at information technologies and a variety of automation systems, and at utilizing SEO in her campaigns. She strives to create emails that speak directly to each individual client.

Riley Manning’s background combines the facts-first storytelling of newspaper reporting with open and artful writing honed while pursuing his MFA in creative writing. This unique combination gives his writing an eloquently relatable honesty.

“I think there’s a greater identity to a product beyond simple materialism, and there are human connections to be made from it. That’s what I tend to think of our work here as: finding methods of meaningful connection.”

Using his unique combination of rigid and open writing backgrounds, Riley discovers the facts of your brand and weaves them into a story that resonates deeply within – because to tell a story to the world, you must first believe it yourself.

Jeremy has worked on feature films, short films, music videos and commercials since 2004, and also attended University of Memphis and Florida State, where he obtained a master’s degree in film production.

“What I enjoy most about the job is Mabus Agency’s passion to grow and constantly improve. It creates an environment that allows me to continually grow as a filmmaker.”

Jeremy joins Mabus Agency out of a desire to be a part of a company that values creativity. As cinematographer, Jeremy utilizes his ability to blend creativity with the technical aspects of film production to create a visual world for the stories our clients need to tell.

Bobby Hudspeth looks at his work as a series of problems to be solved and tries to organize his tasks and efforts to solve the puzzles most efficiently.

“For a Type-A guy, this is a liberating place to be. I’ve spent a good deal of my life around creative friends, and I enjoy the creative process, even if my contribution isn’t necessarily creative. Being a Type-A in a Type-B workplace is always entertaining and inspiring.”

Bobby organizes client work, communicates between departments and helps organize production so creatives can spend their time creating. He makes sure each Mabus Agency creative has all the tools and information needed for success.

To Michael Gann, the way consumers interact with a product is by far the most important aspect of design. From product packaging to websites, he wants to visualize all of the ways consumers can tangibly use the products he designs.

“I remember when I realized web design was much like packaging design because when you get on the Internet you interact with the website and unravel it. A really good website says so much about a company, that they care about what they do so much.”

To achieve the high level of interactivity Michael expects from his websites, he spends the greatest part of his time with strategy, thinking out every level of the website before programming.

Josh came to web developing after earning his undergraduate degree in graphic design. His design background and keen eye bring a unique twist to his projects as a front end developer with Mabus Agency’s web team.

“I love to see how things interact. I don’t like for elements to be static on the page. Even someone with no web background knows when they see a good website because it interacts with them. It’s fun knowing what I want to see happen and then making it happen.”

Coding websites is a labor of love too meticulous for anyone without a true passion for the work. Josh is constantly working to deepen his knowledge of web developing by learning from the rest of the web development team.

Andrew grew up in a creative, hardworking, entrepreneurial family. He simply enjoys doing good work and the satisfaction of making something out of nothing.

“A website is a lot like a storefront. When it goes live, it’s the culmination of a lot of hope and a lot of hard work. It makes that client’s dream a reality.”

Andrew’s coding experience extends across several industries and numerous coding languages. He prides himself on clean, organized coding that makes website management as easy as possible for our clients.

Melanie is a born illustrator and a versatile designer who constantly experiments with new styles and mediums. She enjoys the intricacies of design, honing the details that make a piece pop.

“If I see something I like, I’m going to learn how to make it. When you allow yourself to be versatile, so many more doors open creatively. It’s a fun challenge to bring that creativity to the banking world to provide a visual voice for our clients.”

Melanie broke new ground in the financial industry—as a pink-haired art school undergraduate student, she worked as a teller at a local bank. Now, her work helps banks create a conversation with clients through design.

As a Mabus Agency brand designer, Brennan helps piece together the elements of a brand into a cohesive, consistent identity. He constantly thinks about how graphic design, color palette, and typefaces can be unified in an intentional way. 

“Lots of times, design elements can be strong on their own but fragmented as a whole, because they don’t work together. The right pieces in the right places interact with each other, making something boring into something extraordinary, and making your client relatable to everybody.”

Brennan favors subtle, subversive brand work over bigger-is-better campaigns. He loves collaborating with other departments, using everyone’s input and vision to construct the perfect brand for Mabus Agency’s clients.

Taylor has been paying attention to design her whole life. Even as a child, she didn’t like a product unless its package was visually appealing.

“I like the fact that Mabus is making a change in the design scene in Tupelo and in Mississippi, and I’m excited to be a part of it.”

Taylor moved from the greater Salt Lake City area to help elevate creativity in our region. She knows even the people who don’t consider themselves aesthetically wired are drawn in by good design, which is why she uses her creativity to help others communicate visually.

Corey Childers takes the minimalist thinking of the mid-century Saul Bass posters and Batman comic books he admires into his projects. He places importance in typography and layout before moving on to other elements that would cause clutter.

“I like the structure offered by graphic design, typography and minimalism, as well as the freedom to break that structure.”

To Corey, working within guidelines requires more forethought and creativity, leading to better work. That’s why he thrives in an advertising environment, where he can apply his eye for design to the guidelines set forth by his clients.