Shantel
Today, hospitality, tourism and lifestyle agency, Mari + Gold, named co-founder Carrie Jones as the agency’s first-ever CEO. Since co-founding the agency in early 2022, Jones served Mari + Gold in an advisory capacity while acting as Chief Communications Officer of sister agency, Raindrop. Jones officially joins the Mari + Gold team in a full-time CEO position to lead the agency alongside its President and hospitality marketing industry leader, Nicole Bushnell.
“I’m thrilled for Carrie to join Mari + Gold on a full-time basis, further strengthening our female leadership presence,” said Bushnell. “Her unparalleled expertise and passion for our agency, clients and the industries we serve has already been instrumental in Mari + Gold’s growth since its inception. With her experience and compassion, we look forward to the new heights she will lead us to in this role.”
As a PR professional and agency leader for more than 20 years, Jones has cultivated relationships with media, clients and colleagues across local, regional and national markets and various industries including wine, real estate, luxury, CPG, hospitality, tourism, lifestyle, direct-to-consumer and more. Her proven track record of stellar client results and strong leadership earned her director, vice president and senior vice president roles at various agencies in San Diego. Additionally, Jones launched PR, Social Media and Influencer departments at two agencies, including Raindrop in 2018. Most recently, as Chief Communications Officer at Raindrop from 2020 to February 2023, Jones played a pivotal role in the agency’s growth and success. In 2022, Jones, along with Raindrop CEO Jacques Spitzer and COO Adam Wagner, co-founded Mari + Gold to best meet the needs of restaurant, destination, hotel and lifestyle clientele with a holistic, tailored approach and carefully selected team of experts.
“Carrie is a special leader, world-class communicator, and her background in the hospitality tourism and lifestyle industries is second to none,” said Spitzer. “With Raindrop, her leadership was transformative and Adam and I were thrilled to partner with her when launching Mari + Gold. We are excited to see her thrive in a CEO role and take our team and partners to new levels of success.”
In her new role as CEO of Mari + Gold, Jones will be responsible for driving the agency’s overall vision and business strategy. She will work alongside Bushnell to provide operational and client leadership, while also leveraging her expertise and creativity to support client strategy across various service lines. With 20 team members, Mari + Gold offers a wide range of services including: brand planning and development; website development, design and management; public relations; influencer marketing; design; organic social media management; content creation; paid media and more. For more information, visit mariandgold.com.
About Mari + Gold
Mari + Gold is a creative marketing agency that lives and breathes hospitality, tourism and lifestyle industries. Mari + Gold approaches every client as a holistic partner, strategically guiding brands to their unique version of next-level success. With every partnership, Mari + Gold will deliver a tailored experience from a team of experts with extensive industry experience and a track record for award-winning creative. As a member of the Raindrop Brands family, Mari + Gold is guided by a people-first mentality, a sincere love of marketing and an affinity for fun that, when combined, makes for creative output and client experience unlike any other. For more information visit https://mariandgold.com.
