Pete Lerma Principal

Prior to launching Richards/Lerma, Pete led Click Here, a very successful digital agency that has done innovative work for brands like Amstel Light, Chick-fil-A, Casio, Patrón and Travelocity. Pete is the quintessential digital native. However, being a second-generation Mexican-American, Pete has also kept a pulse on his native culture, and he’s intent on raising the bar in Hispanic marketing as well.

Having spent the last 14 years in one of the best agencies in America, Pete is now taking the approaches he’s learned and applying them to Richards/Lerma. His vision is to create a more relevant connection between brands and their Hispanic consumers. In that capacity, Pete leads a team of seasoned Hispanic marketing experts that makes up Richards/Lerma. In a relatively short period of time, the team has done remarkable work for clients such as Advance Auto Parts, MetroPCS, The Home Depot and Ram Trucks.

Aldo Quevedo Principal & Creative Director

Don’t be fooled. While Aldo may appear to be a pretty laid-back guy, behind the smile and glasses is a creative drive and intensity that he unleashes on every account he leads. He holds titles (ADCOLOR Legend Award, three-time Creative Director of the Year, chairman of the Association of Hispanic Advertising Agencies) and awards (the first Mexican to win a Cannes Lion, the Grand Award at the New York Festivals and an induction into the AAF’s Hall of Achievement^®) that most creatives dream of.

Despite these accolades, he keeps pushing the thinking forward, as he still feels that his best ideas are the ones he’s working on right now – or has yet to create. Most of this can be attributed to his upbringing in Cuernavaca, Mexico, the “City of Eternal Spring” – eternal being the key word. He brings to Richards/Lerma his passion for unearthing unique insights, as well as an endless quest for great ideas. And his shiny awards, because he gets to keep those.

Melissa García Agency Operations Director

Melissa is the quintessential bicultural. Born and raised in San Antonio, Texas, she has held onto her family’s Mexican roots while functioning seamlessly within the U.S. culture. She applies this cultural experience to her professional life as well, pulling in her Hispanic marketplace expertise to help lead the strategic direction of the agency as agency operations director at Richards/Lerma.

With more than 18 years of experience in Hispanic marketing, Melissa has managed such brands as Coca-Cola, Western Union, Burger King, the U.S. Army, McNeil Pharmaceuticals, The J.M. Smucker Co., Diageo and MetroPCS. Recently, she spearheaded the agency’s brand management department, specifically leading The Home Depot, Ram Trucks and Advance Auto Parts businesses, brands that have had success among traditional and bicultural consumers. In her new role, Melissa will head up new business and drive agency growth by expanding agency product offerings, securing top-notch talent and focusing on the strategic operations at Richards/Lerma.

With her extensive experience and A Todo, Con Todo attitude, she’s helping clients and the agency pave the way to the next generation of Hispanic marketing.

Nancy Nájera Morkovsky Brand planning Director

Nancy is a true aficionado of all things cultural. She was born and raised on the U.S./Mexico border, tutored Japanese students as an undergrad college student, studied abroad in London and married a guy from the Czech Republic. Understanding and celebrating people’s uniqueness are the most important (and most enjoyable) parts of her job. This skill has helped Nancy lead the insight and branding development for Ram Trucks, The Home Depot, MetroPCS and Advance Auto Parts, to name a few.

Across accounts, Nancy’s greatest successes have occurred when she has worn her curiosity hat, navigating different brand challenges and taken the road less traveled. Before helping launch Richards/Lerma, Nancy led the charge for discovering unique cultural insights for Coors Light, Payless Shoe Source, Procter & Gamble and Scholastic Books. She looks forward to continuing her cultural explorations for existing and future clients.

Luis Miguel Cuenca Brand Creative Director

Some people are born creative. Some people are natural planners. Luis Miguel is one of the few who can check both boxes. After graduating from Universidad Iberoamericana in Mexico City, Luis Miguel jumped right into advertising, working in Mexico as a copywriter at DDB, Grey and Ogilvy/141, the latter of which he co-managed. Nine years ago, he came to the U.S. to work as a strategic planner, a job that gave him great knowledge and insight into the market – in that role, he created award-winning strategies. He was an outstanding planner but an even better creative – after 18 months, he moved back to his native creative role, where his true passion resides.

Whether as a creative planner or strategic creative, Luis Miguel’s goal has always been to raise the bar on Hispanic marketing. His vision is to help clients’ brands connect more successfully with the Hispanic consumer. As a creative director at Richards/Lerma, he has helped to guide the creative development for The Home Depot, Ram Trucks, MetroPCS and FRAM.

Alex Campo Brand Creative Director

You could say that Alex Campo’s role at Richards/Lerma is the chapter in his career that has been waiting to be written. The story began with Alex as a copywriter at Leo Burnett in his native Guatemala. He then worked for several other agencies before running his own small creative shop for a few years. Some subplots later, Alex received a job offer from a Dallas advertising agency. He quickly relocated and started working for the U.S. Hispanic market, with a leading role on teams for Lowe’s Home Improvement, MetroPCS, Mercedes-Benz, the Texas Lottery Commission and a few others.

As anyone who has met him will tell you, Alex is a complex character and solid strategic thinker who has played the roles of copywriter and art director for more than 18 years. Now at Richards/Lerma, Alex leverages his experience to lead his creative team in developing new and innovative campaign ideas for The Home Depot, Ram Trucks and the United Way.

Esmeralda Gonzalez Brand Media

When it comes to agency experience, you could say that Esmeralda has completed a successful Texas tour. In her 10-plus years in Hispanic advertising, she has worked at some of the most renowned shops in Texas. Esmeralda began her Hispanic advertising career at Bromley Communications in San Antonio, where she worked on the agency’s largest accounts: Western Union and Burger King.

After several years in San Antonio, Esmeralda moved to Dallas for more experience working on other brands, such as Corona and Nissan – though she is fully aware that drinking-and-driving is not OK. She later moved to Austin for several years and gained more experience working on the top grocer in Texas, H-E-B. Now back in Dallas, Esmeralda continues to handle media planning and negotiating duties for H-E-B as well as support for new client initiatives for Richards/Lerma. Her ability to navigate the Hispanic market in Texas, and beyond, has been invaluable to Richards/Lerma.

Liz Silvi Brand Management Director

Liz is an expert diplomat who can artfully manage diverse perspectives. After all, she considers her heart to be Latina and her mind American. Like many second-generation Hispanics, she is passionate about both her American and Latin roots and can flawlessly blend the two. These mediation skills have suited her well as she has been at the forefront of developing multicultural communications, while earning the trust of clients and their multiple agency partners.

Her extensive experience includes automotive, wireless, telecom and retail categories of Fortune 500 brands such as Toyota, Chrysler and Verizon Wireless, to name a few. She has led these accounts at top agencies such as Saatchi & Saatchi and Acento in Los Angeles, as well as GlobalHue in Detroit and New York. Now at Richards/Lerma, she will lead the agency’s brand management discipline and implement best practices to grow the team and the agency roster. She will leverage her expertise in multiplatform development to help ensure that each brand delivers comprehensive communications – with a clear, unified voice.