Crux adds key creative and digital leadership, nearly doubles office space to accommodate new wave of business

Kansas City, Mo. — One local marketing engine is one lap ahead of the competition, fueled by high-speed growth.

Crux KC has amplified its marketing prowess in creative direction, content strategy, digital marketing, paid media, video and podcasting to meet increased client demand. Recent hires in VP of Creative Brooke Barrier and SVP of Digital Operations Josh Selig-Votaw are ushering in a new era for the firm focused on cross-functional expertise.

Barrier oversees the firm’s creative department—encompassing brand, content, design and video—and collaborates with clients to develop insight-driven creative strategies, marketing campaigns and brand identities. Selig-Votaw joined Crux in June from iFocus Marketing and is a trusted authority on digital marketing, media planning and marketing analytics, leading and developing omnichannel strategies for clients. 

“We’re thrilled to welcome Brooke and Josh to help us chart the future of the un-agency,” said Founder & CEO Melea McRae. “Crux serves as a radical rethink of what marketing can and should be: rooted in strategy, infused with creative thinking and tailored for results. We continue to listen to our clients, identifying opportunities to strengthen our team and our offering to meet their needs and flourish alongside them.” 

This year alone, the marketing “un-agency” signed on more than a dozen new clients. Crux increased its total revenue by 25% last year and is on track to meet that same pace of growth in 2024. To accommodate that growth, Crux expanded its Crown Center headquarters by 6,000-square-feet—nearly doubling its square footage to 13,500. 

Crux’s recent office build-out includes additional conference spaces and collaboration areas, a podcast studio, a video and photo studio, expanded production facilities and a game room. Crux partnered with Gastinger Walker and Team Construction to complete the build out, as well as Commonwealth Commercial building management and Hewd Elite Office Structures. 

“Throughout the past eight years, we’ve learned how important it is to have a workspace that inspires collaboration and creativity for our team and our clients,” said President & CCO Ethan Whitehill. “By investing in our people and our environment, and leaning into strategic branding and digital capabilities, we’ve positioned ourselves to grow with our clients and respond to their changing business requirements, providing everything they need and nothing they don’t."

Crux’s newest roster of client partners represents the company’s expertise in B2B and B2C marketing, including Bungii, Chicken N Pickle, JE Dunn, Tential, The Insurance Partners, and TriCom. The firm also strengthened its foothold in higher education, embarking on partnerships with Kansas City Art Institute, Kansas City University, NAIA and Rockhurst University.

Earlier this year, Crux also doubled down on its commitment to the community through its annual Crux for a Cause nonprofit pro-bono marketing services program, awarding two recipients $50,000 each for the first time in 2024, totaling a $100,000 investment: WeCode KC and Child Abuse Prevention Association.

Crux is a team of 45 with specialists across all marketing disciplines serving an active roster of more than 70 client partners. Crux recently ranked No. 3 on the Kansas City Business Journal’s Fractional Executive Service Companies List and has been named an Inc Best Workplace and an Inc. 5000 company (#1500 in 2023, and #2678 in 2022), as well as a two-time Ingram’s Corporate Report 100 nominee, a two-time KCBJ Champion of Business and 2023 Fast 50 company, and a three-time Greater KC Chamber of Commerce Top 10 Small Business. Crux has also been named as a Kansas City Business Journal’s Best Places to Work in 2021 and is a Healthy KC Gold Certified company.

About Crux KC

Crux is the “un-agency,” a radical rethink of what marketing can and should be. Our fractional CMOs, surrounded by a squad of specialists, focus on what truly drives a business forward – a high-performance machine built for branding, messaging, content, communications, digital marketing and paid media – to elevate brands, amplify missions and empower people. Learn more at cruxkc.com.