Kristi Arp spent 10 years working in retail. She loved her job as a manager for Merle Norman cosmetics, but working retail hours — being away from her family on weekends and holidays — was difficult. When her sister opened an advertising agency, Solutions Inc., and offered her a job, Arp jumped at the chance.

“The opportunity to help grow my sister’s business was intriguing,” she said. It also gave her a chance to explore her interest in retail and marketing, which she said relates to advertising. Arp joined Solutions Inc. as an office manager, but also helped with account coordination and project management.

In 1999, she left her sister’s company to join Flynn Wright Inc., a marketing, public relations and advertising agency, as an account coordinator.

“Flynn Wright is extremely family oriented,” she said. “It’s a hard-working group with a lot of camaraderie. There’s such great energy here. It’s exiting.”

Arp says what she likes most about her job is the variety. She never knows what new challenges she will face from day to day. Arp describes her duties as such: She serves as a liaison between clients and the Flynn Wright creative team. She helps the client determine what it needs, which can range from a brochure to an advertising campaign to a long-term marketing strategy. She recruits team members from Flynn Wright’s various departments and sets specific goals for the project.

“Then I orchestrate, manage, produce and deliver,” she said.

Arp believes that in the years to come, clients will realize that an agency like Flynn Wright can do more that just promote fun campaigns. She says the business will become more service-oriented and consulting-based.

“We can serve as strategists, and I think clients’ understanding of that is becoming more prevalent,” she said. “We can help them to research the proper message and dynamics for their audience.”

When not at work, Arp spends her free time with her husband of 13 years, Kevin, and her daughters. Sometimes she misses the retail world, and she says if she didn’t work for Flynn Wright, she would probably have a little boutique selling clothing and cosmetics. As it is, however, she is sufficiently stimulated by her work at the agency.

“We have a lot of young blood and talent moving in the right direction,” she said.