CINCINNATI, OH—Olberding Brand Family (OBF), a Cincinnati-based fourth-generation, family-owned company with offices throughout the U.S. and in the U.K, announces significant leadership changes, capabilities expansion as well as adding headcount to meet the demands of ever-changing consumer brand engagement. Originally founded in 1919 as Phototype Engraving Co, OBF has expanded over time to create a seamless path from design-to-shelf primarily serving consumer packaged goods (CPG) companies such as Procter & Gamble, The Kroger Co, Scotts, Kimberly-Clark, Church & Dwight, The Hershey Co, Tyson, L’Oréal and Kao Brands, among others.
As a graphics services company, OBF’s design services are branded under Coach House, brand expansion services are managed by Amplify and prepress services for the entire packaging supply chain are handled by Phototype. The three organizations, Coach House, Amplify and Phototype comprise Olberding Brand Family, work in harmony when leveraged together. The Olberding Brand Family holistically partners with CPG companies through the entire brand activation lifecycle, from the physical store shelf to the digital shelf.
“As a family-owned company we live our values every day; we are true partners with the best-known brands in the world. The ways those brands engage with consumers are constantly evolving—and we are changing with them,” said Eric Grau, OBF president. “Brands must build trust and truly know their consumers toward driving sales through all points of engagement,” Grau continued. OBF is expanding its capabilities to better serve its CPG clients and engage their consumers, including strategic content development and deployment, and services for emerging social and digital platforms. To that end, company leadership changes include:
- Steve Olberding transitions from Co-CEO to Chairman of the Board
- David Olberding, based in OBF’s Columbus, OH office, assumes the role of chief executive officer of Olberding Brand Family (formerly Co-CEO)
- Gerald Anglim, formerly chief operating officer transitions to the role of chief technology officer
- John Herbstreit assumes the role of chief graphics officer, formerly VP of graphic services
- PJ Katien has been named chief client officer, formerly VP, sales and marketing
The company also announces the hiring of its first chief marketing officer. As CMO, Elle Morris will be responsible for continual growth and development of OBF’s overall brand strategy, analyzing market trends and data as they relate to OBF’s business objectives in order to drive brand awareness. She was most recently senior vice president of global strategy with Marks, part of SGS & Co. and will be based in OBF’s Cincinnati office. “These organizational changes speak to the expansion of our business. And bringing Elle Morris on board adds muscle to our already impressive senior leadership team,” said Grau.
OBF has recently completed a major renovation of its Columbus, OH office to create a more flexible workspace. It will soon embark on a renovation of existing Cincinnati facilities to optimize workspace; OBF currently owns nine buildings on Gilbert and Florence Avenues totaling over 118,399 square feet. The company employs more than 370 people across six offices and plans to add more than 40 new employees throughout the organization in 2023, to meet an expanding client base and growing its digital brand engagement strategies.