LAS VEGAS, Oct. 1, 2003 (PRIMEZONE) -- Steven D. Stern, a nationally recognized expert in corporate, crisis and financial communications, announced the formation of Stern And Company. The new firm provides Las Vegas companies with a local resource that provides the full capabilities of a first-tier national public and investor relations firm.
Mr. Stern said, "After extensive conversations with CEOs and CFOs of some of our city's leading companies, it became clear to me that Las Vegas had an unfilled need for a top-rank corporate communications company.
"Our city, as well as being a global leisure and entertainment destination, has emerged as a major center of corporate growth. The companies headquartered here, both public and private, need strategic corporate communications support that is immediately available, not a plane trip or a time zone away."
Stern And Company is unique in serving clients exclusively with a staff of senior-level public and investor relations professionals, all of whom have long-tenured experience in the corporate, media and marketing arenas.
The firm's practice areas cover the full range of communications disciplines: corporate and financial relations, public relations, strategic and product marketing, crisis communications, transaction communications, restructurings, bankruptcies and litigation support.
One area in which experience is especially critical is crisis communications, Mr. Stern noted. "There are few firms anywhere in the country, much less in Las Vegas, with our experience. We have successfully managed crises related to bankruptcy, financial reversals, mergers, hostile takeovers, product tampering and white collar crime."
"One of the major advantages of being located in Nevada," said Mr. Stern, "is that we benefit from the cost advantages that make this region so attractive. As a result, we are able to provide service equal to that of national communications firms at rates that our clients find remarkably affordable."
Mr. Stern has an extensive background in business communications. He began his career as a journalist in New York and Washington, covering the securities industry and activities of the Securities and Exchange Commission, White House, Congress and the Federal Reserve for Dow Jones and Company, Inc. (publisher of The Wall Street Journal and the Dow Jones News Service), Reuters Economic Service, The Daily Bond Buyer, American Banker, U.S. Oil Week, Securities Week and The Washington Star.
He later was appointed Director of Public Relations for Gulf+Western Industries, Inc.; Director of Public Relations for Occidental Petroleum; and Director of Corporate Communications for Wickes Companies, Inc.
He also served as a speech writer for three U.S. Senators and the Chairman of the Federal Home Loan Bank Board, and consulted to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and IBM.
In addition to its expertise in corporate, crisis and financial communications, Mr. Stern said, the firm also offers marketing communications support at both the corporate and product levels. "Today's tight-fisted consumer presents a challenge to marketers. Our experience through previous business cycles enables us to effectively advise our clients to deal with dwindling brand loyalty and skepticism about advertising, and to find or create new opportunities for marketplace success."