SYRACUSE — ABC Creative Group, a Syracuse–based marketing and advertising agency, has moved to a 6,400-square-foot space at 235 Walton St. in Syracuse’s Armory Square.

The firm previously operated in a 5,200-square-foot office at 430 E. Genesee St. in Syracuse. 

ABC Creative is now situated in the same building that is home to radio station operator, Galaxy Media. The ad agency began operations in its new space on Dec. 15. Its landlord is 235 Walton LLC.

“I knew we needed to grow. I knew I needed more space,” says Travis Bort, owner of ABC Creative Group who also serves as its creative director. “So I just started looking.”

Pursuing new space

Bort started looking last spring, saying he’s familiar with a lot of the buildings in the Armory Square area “just because of the business we’re in” and the contacts that result, he explains.

“We really liked the idea of being in Armory Square,” adds Jenn Cline, the firm’s COO.

Bort says he also loved the firm’s previous location, which overlooked Firefighter’s Memorial Park, but says the Armory Square space provides a lot more “options and entertainment” and restaurants for the people who work for ABC Creative Group. 

“Employees can get out and walk around, go grab a coffee … It’s more comfortable for them down here,” he adds.

The company had operated in its previous building since 2002, says Bort. It started on the structure’s second floor and eventually moved to the fourth floor because of growth and the need for additional space. Its lease was up at the end of 2018, having rented the space from Cheney Holmes Management Group, Bort notes.

Bort says he considered buying a building but decided not to pursue that option. The firm’s new space had been empty for “several years” and needed “a lot of work,” he adds.

Salt Point Services, LLC of Cazenovia handled the renovation work in the space at a cost that Bort declined to disclose. Salt Point started its work in September, which targeted walls, kitchen and cabinetry installation, and electrical work as well. 

Bort says he handled the design on the space. “I think it definitely suits our culture a lot better … It definitely helps us to have more of a collaborative effort here,” he adds.

ABC Creative Group paid for the move using company assets, according to Bort and Cline, who spoke with CNYBJ on Jan. 18. 

About the company

ABC Creative Group currently employs 15 people, including Bort and Cline. The firm also operates a satellite office at the FIVE South College Drive building on the SUNY Broome campus in the town of Dickinson, which is also home to the Agency, the lead economic-development organization for Broome County.

ABC Creative Group’s services include content marketing, digital marketing, media planning and buying, social media, video production, and web development and design.

The firm services about 15 to 20 regular clients, including Cryomech Inc., Schneider Packaging Equipment Co. Inc., the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum, and Visions Federal Credit Union. It also works with what Bort called “project” clients, describing them as organizations that might need a corporate video or a website.