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June 18, 2026
After 45 Years, Stephens Direct Becomes Stephens+, and Hands the Company to Its Employees
Cincinnati-Dayton agency converts to 100% employee-owned, debuts as “the employee holding company,” with newly enhanced capabilities in media, strategy, creator, and experiential capabilities.
CINCINNATI / DAYTON, OH — June 18, 2026 — Stephens Direct, the privately held full-service marketing agency that has served regional and national brands for 45 years, announced its relaunch as Stephens+, a 100% employee-owned company structured as an Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP).
The new identity is built around a single idea: Stephens, plus more. Plus 45 years of history. Plus the people who have built it. Plus four newly enhanced service lines: media, strategy, creator, and experiential. Plus a new ownership structure in which every employee holds equity in what comes next.
The transition pairs four and a half decades of client work with a new operating model the company is calling “the employee holding company” — a deliberate counter-position to the consolidation sweeping the industry’s largest holding companies. Where global HoldCos concentrate ownership, Stephens+ distributes it.
“We’ve spent 45 years building deep relationships and great work for clients across the region and the country,” said Phil Stephens, who transitions from owner to President/CEO and Board Chair of the new entity. “The Stephens Family is thrilled to turn this business over to the employees that are responsible for the success we’ve had. Forming this ESOP was the best way for us to give back to our team and to ensure our culture remains intact.”
“This is effectively a startup with an incredible foundation,” said Rory Foster, the Chief Marketing Officer. “We have 45 years of client relationships, craft, and institutional muscle, and we are now organized as a fully integrated, employee-owned shop with real skin in the game on every brief that crosses our desks.”
Jen Ball, who joined Stephens 15 years ago and currently serves as Chief Operating Officer, will continue to lead operations. “Our clients have always told us they could feel the ownership in our work,” she said. “Now it’s literal. Every person on every account is now an owner.”
Stephens+ continues to operate from its Dayton headquarters as a remote work organization and will retain all existing client relationships, staff, and capabilities through the transition.