BTY

Ed Howie has leveraged his over 25+ years of marketing and operational leadership with Chick-fil-A, Inc., Atlanta Bread Company, and H-E-B Grocery to support his clients and lead his team of communication experts through unique collaboration in growing sales and market share by developing and enabling operationally-sound, visually-compelling, brand-centric solutions. BTYcreative serves clients throughout the country, with offices in San Antonio, Austin, and Atlanta.

With depth in both marketing and operations, Ed and his team have an unusually successful track record in maximizing his clients’ brand potential. Ed is also a gifted communicator, presenter, and facilitator.

Ed’s core strengths are: ideation, strategic, woo (winning others over), connectedness, and positivity.

In addition to leading BTYcreative, Ed is a founding partner of gusto! restaurants in Atlanta, Georgia, and a member of Entrepreneurs Organization. In 2015, Ed became a certified spin instructor. He teaches indoor cycling several times a week at Joyride Cycling Studios in San Antonio and frequently at exhale Atlanta.

Ed previously served as Director of Food Service Marketing for H-E-B Grocery Company, a $15 billion regional grocery store chain. H-E-B is long regarded as one of the most innovative retail organizations in the world. Prior to H-E-B, Ed led the re-branding efforts of Atlanta Bread Company-Bakery Cafes, as Director of Marketing. He built his career with Chick-fil-A for 17 years—the last 10 of which he served on the Corporate Operations Team, while leading multiple brand development projects.

Ed graduated from University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill with a degree in Journalism-Advertising. He also completed his MBA at Kennesaw State University while traveling 120 days a year at the same time.

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Rachel Witkowski serves as Vice President and Chief of Staff for BTYcreative. She has over 20 years of experience in advertising and brand design for a wide range of brands.

While helping to lead the team and business, she works to ensure all of our client’s brands are on point. Over the years, she has worked at Design and Marketing Agencies, in-house marketing departments, and has donated her skills to non-profit organizations. Rachel earned a Bachelor's of Fine Art in Communication Design with a minor in Journalism Advertising from The University of North Texas. She is also a fine artist and loves to draw and paint. Fun fact: She helped restore the art on a World War II airplane in college!

Gwynn Deaver serves as our Vice President of Brand Strategy. She has over 15 years of experience in helping organizations develop, define and communicate their brand story across a variety of mediums.

Throughout her career, a key element in her success has been the ability to develop long-term relationships with clients. Gwynn's goal is to implement these foundational relationships with each of our clients. Her greatest joy is collaborating with others to create strategies that help clients achieve their goals. She will help drive the strategy for both brand and media while ensuring that messaging is consistent and on point across all marketing elements.

Gwynn graduated from Baylor University with a degree in Marketing and Management. She received her MBA from University of Texas at San Antonio and is a native San Antonian. Gwynn currently serves on the board for Alpha Home and oversees its Development Committee. Her greatest joys are her family, her vacation home in Port Aransas, Dad Rock, and Kraft Mac n' Cheese. When she is not at work, she is a full time mom to two active kids.

As the Creative Director for BTYcreative, Donna brings over 20 years of experience in the advertising and marketing industry. Before joining BTYcreative, she worked as a freelance Art Director, developing brands and managing the day-to-day operations of her freelance business. Prior to venturing out on her own as a freelancer, Donna worked at several advertising agencies in the San Antonio area as a Senior Art Director.

Donna has worked with many national and local brands, including the San Antonio Convention & Visitors Bureau, Hyatt Regency Hill Country Resort and Spa, the San Antonio Spurs, Gerber Legendary Blades, Summit Christian Center, Shiner Bock, Corona, CW Floors, Universal Toyota, ChildSafe, the San Antonio Zoo, National Shooting Complex, H-E-B and the San Antonio Express-News.

Donna earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from the San Antonio Art Institute, and is still active in the art community.

As Director of Media & Production for BTYcreative, Peter brings over a decade of experience as an editor in film and television with studios such as 20th Century Fox, Regency, and Oscilloscope. He has worked on movies such as Jumper and Fair Game, and his shorts have been screened at the Toronto International Film Festival.

Peter is also a gifted storyteller, perfecting his craft as a producer/director of top branded content in the health & fitness industry, including for ESPN.

MáriaLuisa has been in the advertising/marketing field for 30 years. She has worked for Fortune 500 companies, small advertising agencies of 6, to one of the largest advertising agencies in San Antonio with 60+ employees. Her strengths are in brand development and visualization. She has over 21 years of broadcast experience and thrives in collaborative settings.

MáriaLuisa speaks Spanish and English and has worked on international, national and local accounts. Some of those include AIG, Broadway Bank, the Bank of San Antonio, Alamo City Golf Trail, Cavender Auto Group, Cavender Chevy, Cavender Toyota of Cedar Park, Food Management Partners, San Antonio Economic Development Foundation, Porter Loring Mortuaries, and Sol Schwartz Certified Public Accountants.

MáriaLuisa’s most esteemed accomplishments are receiving her degree from the Art Institute of Houston in Advertising Design, Dale Carnegie Professional Development Training and winning the South Texas Women’s State Cup in Women’s First Division Soccer.

Sue is a Brand Strategist for BTYcreative with over 25 years of marketing experience (in the UK and US). With a history in corporate marketing roles and non-profit organizations, Sue uses her dynamic, “out of the box” thinking to collaborate with our BTY brands, developing creative concepts to energize brands and tell their story with impact.

Sue has worked with a wide range of organizations in many fields, including; education, electronics manufacturing, magazine publishing, sports marketing (soccer, swimming), artificial intelligence project marketing, remodeling and home building, aviation component manufacturing, The Winston School San Antonio, The San Antonio Athenians Women Semi-Pro Soccer Team, Child Advocates San Antonio (CASA), Renovation Dallas (magazine), AAMCO, TracLabs/ Metrica, Fastest Man in Texas, Olympian Swim Event in San Antonio, PAC International (UK).

Sue grew up in East Yorkshire, England, and moved to the USA in 1992. She attended Salford University (UK), graduated with a Higher National Diploma in Business & Finance, and earned her post-graduate Chartered Institute of Marketing Diploma from Manchester Metropolitan University (UK). Sue became a US citizen in 2019 and lives in San Antonio with her husband and two children, and rescue pup, Mack.

As Visual Storyteller for BTYcreative, Emily brings to the table nearly a decade of experience, perspective, and tenacity. She has worked with a wide variety of clients in different industries: from the arts to higher education, from health to technology, from adult beverages to mortgage lending, and more. Emily believes that a cohesive and memorable customer experience is crucial to push a brand miles ahead of its competition, and she's passionate about using her toolbox of creativity, communication, and problem-solving skills to help your company thrive.

Emily is a proud Texas State University alumna, with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Communication Design and a Mass Communications Minor.

What sparks joy for this creative soul? That's easy — Emily enjoys reading by the pool, sipping on a craft beer, saying "Hey there, Delilah" to her cat, and pursuing a life of minimalism, sustainability, and intentionality.

Alejandra “Ale” Rodriguez is a Brand Strategist for BTYcreative. Ale previously worked in the news industry as a producer for four years. Even though she began her career as a journalist, Ale labels herself as a storyteller.  
 
Throughout her journalistic career, Ale has tried to incorporate unconventional aspects into her newscast that she feels better portrays a story, significantly impacting and connecting viewers to the community.  

Before entering the news industry, Ale worked with Texas-based production companies that inspired her to help others through authentic and creative storytelling. This passion eventually led her to choose a career outside of the news. 

Ale graduated from the University of North Texas with a degree in Converged Broadcast Media and a minor in Communications. 

Ale is a native San Antonian, and when she is not at work, she can be found at a local brewery, singing karaoke with her husband, or singing Taylor Swift songs to her two cats and one dog. 

Amanda Santillan is a Brand Strategist for BTYcreative. Amanda previously worked as a marketing coordinator for a mobile home dealer for almost three years. As a marketing coordinator she worked very closely with the marketing director, learned how to handle multiple projects at a time, assisted with any promotional campaigns and evaluated current trends happening in social media.
Amanda is originally from Monahans, TX and when she graduated from High School moved to San Antonio, went to UTSA and graduated with a degree in marketing.
When Amanda is not at work you can find her at home training her dog Meeko to open the fridge and other unusual tricks. If she’s not at home she’s exploring the city of San Antonio with friends.

Ashley Hernandez is a Media Editor for BTYcreative. She previously shared her talent as a storyteller in classrooms in Galveston and San Antonio. She taught video production for four years before her journey shifted to telling love stories with a wedding studio. Ashley believes there is a story in everything she does and tries to find new, compelling ways to share them to the world.

Originally from Dallas, Ashley attended the University of Texas in Austin where she earned a bachelor’s degree in radio, television, and film. During her studies, she found her strength in editing and was inspired to be part of the female representation in her industry.

Creativity comes in many forms for Ashley. When she is not editing, she can be found sewing, baking, or crafting gifts for friends. Her favorite type of days are rainy ones, curled up with her husband and two cats watching a good movie.

Nanette is a Finance Assistant at BTYcreative. With 25+ years of experience, Nanette thrives in the hustle and bustle of a busy office, addressing the small, and sometimes big, items that help our clients and our team succeed. She is fully bilingual and has a service mentality that allows her to provide the highest quality customer service while wearing multiple hats.

Nanette's passion for service was discovered during her tenures at several large advertising agencies in the San Antonio area. She has worked with various national and international clients such as Proctor & Gamble, the Texas Lottery, Baptist Health System, the San Antonio Convention & Visitors Bureau, and the Mexico Ministry of Tourism.

For over 20 years, Eleazar Hernández has led teams through all phases of the creative process to produce award-winning print, digital, broadcast, and experiential solutions in English and Spanish. He has had a particular focus on developing strategic communications solutions for companies who want to reach the rapidly growing multicultural audience. Throughout his career, he has ideated and produced work for clients such as Anne Klein, Ursula of Switzerland, Steven Kretchmer, the New York State Museum, Kaiser Family Foundation, Univision, Koresh Dance Company, San Antonio Botanical Garden, TxDOT, the San Antonio Spurs, and the Dallas Cowboys.

Hernández’s work has been displayed at the Smithsonian Museo Alameda and been recognized by LogoLounge, AIGA, Basel, and Behance. He was named one of the nation’s top designers by Graphic Design: USA and has received numerous American Graphic Design Awards, Tellys, and Addys.

Eleazar earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts in graphic design, a Master of Arts in art history, and pursued a PhD in anthropology. He recently authored Leading Creative Teams for APress Publishing in New York City. His first book provides tips, tricks, and strategies to junior- and mid-level creatives whose career goal is to work their way to the position of creative director. Currently, Hernández is working on a new manuscript that explores the utilization of beauty in design. As part of his latest discourse, Eleazar is exploring the theory of anthroposemiotics in brand communications and product design and how it influences consumer purchase decisions.

Lucy served as the trusted mascot of BTYcreative, as well as the door guard from the multiple package deliveries and the stress reliever for our team for many wonderful years. She was a wise and spunky 10-year-old Labradoodle. Her favorite hobbies included going on long walks, barking at the mailman, and exploring the smells of her own backyard. She loved when her human friends pretended to chase her around the house, backyard, or office; her bark was the loudest during this game.

Lucy knew a good treat when she saw one and she took mealtime very seriously (shouldn’t we all?). She loved to be pet, preferably no less than five minutes at a time. Although she had an extraordinary amount of energy for a 10-year-old, naps were a highlight of her every day. Although we no longer have our Chief Barketer, the BTYteam still remembers Lucy fondly.

Thank you, Lucy, for serving our team and your humans with love.