EMERGING, AWARD RECIPIENT
Jorge A. Plasencia didn’t just start working at 14 — he started his lifelong career. An intern at Radio Mambí, he worked in radio throughout high school, and by his senior year, he secured a position as program director of the stations. From there, Plasencia moved on to progressive positions that greatly influenced the Hispanic community, including director of Hispanic marketing for the Florida Marlins, vice president of Estefan Enterprises, and corporate vice president and operating manager of Univision Radio. By 31, Plasencia was highly successful — yet he decided to switch career paths to apply his passions for audience development in a new way.
He founded República in 2006, a multidisciplinary agency based in Miami, Fla., that specializes in connecting Hispanic and general market consumers with brands. Its competencies include branding, digital, social media, public relations, media buying, promotions and research services.
Despite launching the company right as the 2007 economic downturn hit, República has experienced year-over-year growth. Its success stems not only from providing high-quality services and products but also from the understanding of client needs and how to best deliver on them. Client insight stems from the agency’s strong personal and professional ties to key Latino communities in major cities such as Los Angeles and Miami.
In addition to helping brands transcend culture and language barriers, Chairman and CEO Plasencia helps the community transcend barriers of another kind. República is known for its pro-bono efforts for organizations such as Amigos For Kids, St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital, Volunteer USA Foundation and the U.S. Department of State, among others. The agency also recently launched Repúblicares, a corporate social responsibility effort offering nonprofit organizations the opportunity to win free services for a year.
HOW TO REACH: República, www.republica.net
