Nichole Baccala Ward is the new owner of TBC, the creative agency founded in 1974 by Ed Trahan, Tom Burden and Allan Charles.
The transition comes as the Baltimore-based advertising, branding and public relations company marks the 50th anniversary of its founding as Trahan, Burden & Charles and the retirement of co-founder and creative director Allan Charles.
Ward, who serves as CEO, is the agency’s first sole owner. She has been with the company for more than 23 years and became its president in 2014. She has led marketing efforts for numerous brands over the years, including Dow Jones and The Wall Street Journal; Haribo USA; and Pearson Education. She led the staff through the COVID-19 pandemic and stewarded TBC’s recent appointment as the American Diabetes Association’s first agency of record in its 80-year history.
“We’re taking advantage of our spirit of creativity, curiosity and resilience as we move forward,” Ward said in a statement. “We know that TBC’s future holds even greater promise built on a foundation of 50 years of excellence. Together, we’ll continue to deliver integrated solutions and inspire success for clients of all sizes.”
Along with the advertising agency they launched in 1974, Trahan, Burden and Charles opened an affiliated, in-house TV and broadcast production company called Charles Street Films, to strengthen the agency’s reputation for creativity and give it the ability to produce films and videos. Charles Street Films made TBC one of the first agencies in the U. S. to have an in-house studio to shoot its own commercials and videos.
Working with media firms such as Westinghouse Broadcasting Company and The Baltimore News-American, a division of The Hearst Corp., TBC gained national recognition for campaigns involving Leonard “Boogie” Weinglass’ Merry-Go-Round clothing chain and the Holocaust Memorial Fund, among others. It was the first agency to make a multi-year, multi-million-dollar deal with MTV.
Since its early days, TBC has grown from a small creative shop to a full-service branding, advertising and strategic communications agency that still has in-house production capabilities. It’s now based at 3601 O’Donnell St. in Brewer’s Hill with a staff of 65, and its services include advertising; brand development and strategy; content strategy and copywriting; strategic communications; social media; public relations; media planning; buying and analytics and digital marketing.
TBC’s major clients over the years have included the Maryland Lottery; Miller Brewing Company; the National Aquarium; Harrah’s Casinos; the Baltimore Orioles; the Baltimore Ravens; McDonald’s; CVS Pharmacy; Visit Baltimore; Smart Balance; the NAACP; MinuteClinic; Micron; KT Tape; CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield; University of Maryland Global Campus (www.umgc.edu); and University of Maryland Eastern Shore (wwwcp.umes.edu). It was one of the first agencies to work with the Ronald McDonald House.
Charles started his career in advertising and TV production when he was 15. Among numerous awards he has received are two Clios for copywriting. The father with former Baltimore Sun gossip columnist Laura Charles of film actor Josh Charles, he is credited with discovering and casting many celebrities at the beginning of their careers and working on a variety of MTV music videos. Among the individuals and companies he’s worked with are: Yellow Book; Campbell’s Soup; UPS; Snyder’s of Hanover; Pepsi; Foxwoods Resort Casino and William Donald Schaefer.
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