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Award-Winning Team Bailey and Cocke Reunite To Lead Creative Department at MP&F 

Award-Winning Team Bailey and Cocke Reunite To Lead Creative Department at MP&F 

By MP&F Staff

Bailey joins, Cocke promoted to director of Creative Services roles 

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (May 17, 2022)MP&F Strategic Communications today announced that Don Bailey and Tom Cocke, two industry powerhouses, will lead and grow its award-winning creative team as directors of Creative Services.  

Bailey, a multi-time Art Director of the Year award winner, will join the agency as director of Creative Services, Design. Cocke, an industry veteran with more than 20 years of experience, joined MP&F last year and has been elevated to director of Creative Services, Copy. Bailey and Cocke assume the leadership roles following Mary Elizabeth Davis, the agency’s first director of Creative Services, being named partner in 2020. Both previously served in leadership roles at Nashville agency Buntin. 

“Tom and Don worked together for more than a decade earlier in their careers and during that time set an impressive track record of producing award-winning work and building culture that inspires creativity,” Davis said. “Having Tom on board these last 12 months has been a catalyst for our team. With Don leading alongside Tom, we will take our clients’ businesses to new heights. We are proud to have leaders of their caliber and character guiding our Creative Services team.” 

Bailey brings more than 20 years of industry-recognized creative experience, including more than 15 years of advertising agency experience. His creative credits include best-in-class work for brands including Trex, Perkins, Logan’s Roadhouse, Nashville SC and American Born Moonshine. Bailey also has a wealth of social media experience and previously led a team of content creators and strategists. In addition to his work on behalf of clients, Bailey has served as an adjunct instructor for his alma mater, Belmont University.  

Since joining MP&F in 2021, Cocke has taken the agency’s copywriting to a new level. In his new role, he will co-lead the Creative Services team with Bailey and coach writers across all areas of the agency. Cocke brings an unparalleled amount of creative experience to his new role, having worked on behalf of national brands at ad agencies in Atlanta, Charlotte and Nashville. His decorated career spans from local recognition to national, including the inaugural “One Nashville Under Gold” campaign for Nashville SC and the EMMY award-winning Tennessee Education Lottery’s “Cash Cow” campaign. Along the way, he has picked up numerous awards, including The One Show, Communication Arts, Clios, OBIEs, EMMYs, Jay Chiat Awards and ADDYs, and is a three-time winner of Copywriter of the Year, awarded by the American Advertising Awards’ Nashville Chapter.   

These leadership moves are just the latest in a series of high-profile announcements for the agency, which celebrates 35 years in business in 2022. Longtime agency leader Jennifer Brantley was named managing partner in January, and veteran marketing strategist and former journalist Knight Stivender was added to the agency’s ownership group as a partner in February. Started as a public relations firm in 1987, the majority women-owned agency has grown to a staff of 80 strategic communications, marketing and advertising professionals with a roster of 100-plus clients across the country.   

For more information, please contact: 

Hannah Purdy, 615-259-4000, hpurdy@mpf.com 

About MP&F Strategic Communications 

Measurable, creative and effective strategies are hallmarks of Nashville-based MP&F Strategic Communications’ award-winning work. The agency, which celebrates 35 years in business in 2022, provides marketing, advertising, public relations, graphic design, website development, SEO, branding, crisis communications and more to ensure that its clients succeed. MP&F is a women-owned business and the largest locally owned communications, advertising and PR firm in the state of Tennessee.