LEWIS PR Hires Steven Shimek to Drive Growth in Los Angeles

SAN FRANCISCO, CA--(Marketwire - January 13, 2010) - LEWIS PR, a global communications agency, has hired Steven Shimek as general manager of its Los Angeles, CA office. Shimek will be responsible for account servicing, business development, HR and operations. Shimek joins from Ruder Finn where he was SVP of national business development and marketing. During his three-year tenure he helped win clients as diverse as Longs Drugs, Demand Media, Silver Spring Networks, APP Pharmaceuticals, Radware, the AVP and the NFL Players Association. Steven will help drive the agency's presence beyond technology and digital entertainment into broader consumer and vertical sectors, such as travel and tourism.

LEWIS has also hired Nicola Piggott as senior account manager to work alongside Shimek. Nicola has over eight years of experience in PR and journalism. She worked agency-side at Hill & Knowlton managing campaigns for Motorola and Walt Disney Worldwide Home Entertainment, and in-house with The McGraw Hill Companies, Hilton Hotels Corporation and Nestlé USA. Nicola also brings her experience as a former journalist, most recently as a freelance features writer for the National Enquirer.

"Steven Shimek and Nicola Piggott bring valuable new skills and experience to LEWIS. They are deeply connected to the influencers in Los Angeles, have strong commercial track records and have advised organizations from a range of industries," said Lucy Allen, SVP of global account servicing at LEWIS PR. "We're actively adding to our senior team, which benefits our clients and enables us to implement a wider range of communications programs. We'll combine this with some new tools we've developed to take advantage of the changes in the PR industry."

"I was attracted to the commercial, can-do approach of LEWIS which makes it stand out and is a hallmark of its campaigns," said Steven Shimek, general manager, LEWIS Los Angeles. "I'm looking forward to helping the agency raise its profile in Los Angeles and work with larger brands on a global platform."

"LEWIS presents a great opportunity to work with clients in the sectors I'm most passionate about, while also expanding my experience. Despite the transition to social media, it's still important to be able to tell a strong, compelling story and to create exciting content," said Nicola Piggott, senior account manager, LEWIS Los Angeles. "I'm looking forward to using my experience with major brands in the technology, tourism, entertainment and FMCG sectors to help make LEWIS Los Angeles a recognized leader in communications."

Shimek will join the US management team and will report to Lucy Allen, SVP. Current clients of LEWIS Los Angeles include ViewSonic, a leading global provider of visual display, computing and digital content solutions, IOGEAR, a provider of Audio / Video and consumer electronics solutions and Stickam, the first and largest Web site dedicated to live interactive video streaming. Noah Dye, managing director, who has been temporarily overseeing LEWIS Los Angeles, will hand over commercial responsibilities during Q1 10. Both Shimek and Piggott joined LEWIS in early January 2010.

About LEWIS PR

LEWIS PR is a global public relations firm. In addition to traditional media and analyst relations, LEWIS specializes in social media, digital marketing and creative services. It works with companies to implement integrated communications programs on an international scale. LEWIS works with leading and emerging brands across multiple sectors, including automotive, consumer, government, healthcare, insurance, legal, non-profit, technology and telecom. LEWIS has 38 wholly-owned offices across the US, EMEA and Asia Pacific, with regional headquarters in London, San Francisco and Singapore.

Contact Information: Contact: Daniel White 619 677 2704 danielw@lewispr.com