• by Richard Whitman , Columnist, April 9, 2017

Following the layoff of 21 people --16 in Richmond and 5 in New York --The Martin Agency will close its New York City office at 71 5th Avenue.

This round of staff cuts follows the layoff of 29 people last September following the loss of the Walmart account. It's not all bad news though. Some of the New York staff will remain in the city but relocate to the New York offices of the agency's parent company, Interpublic. Others will be offered reassignment to Richmond.

On the closure, a Martin Agency spokesperson said, “As a part of a strategic decision to focus on growth opportunities in Richmond and London, and due to a reduction in New York-based client work, we informed employees in our New York City office late Wednesday of our plans to reduce our presence in New York City.”

Explaining further, the spokesperson added, “The exact impact on employees in New York City will not be finalized for some time as we work through the details of which employees will be moving to the new space, which employees accept reassignment to our Richmond headquarters and which positions will be eliminated. This change does not affect any Richmond headquarter Martin employees.”