What city isn’t proud of its accomplished citizens – both residents and corporate neighbors?
The City of Dublin being no exception, the community relations department has been reaching out to its acclaimed and award-winning residents and businesses and asking for their participation in a new brand marketing campaign.
“Dublin, Where Champions Reside” was launched just before The Presidents Cup last fall with an ad featuring Jack and Barbara Nicklaus, both prominent Dublin figures.
The ad lists each of their accomplishments – 18 professional golf championship wins for Jack, chairman of the Nicklaus Children’s Health Care Foundation for Barbara, among others – and a quote from them answering the question, “Why Dublin, Ohio?”
“The people of Dublin continue to make Muirfield Village Golf Club a truly special place. We couldn’t be prouder or more thankful,” they say.
The second ad – which features Wendy Thomas, daughter of The Wendy’s Company Founder Dave Thomas – was released to coincide with the opening of the new flagship restaurant on state Route 161 this spring.
“Our mission is to support City Council’s goal of third-party validation when it comes to
promoting the amenities and services in the City of Dublin,” says Community Relations Director Sandra Puskarcik.
It’s one thing for a City Council member to enthuse about Dublin’s parks, but hearing from the Wendy, well, that’s a little bit different.
“I love the parks here,” says Thomas, who works in Dublin at the headquarters of Thomas 5, a Wendy’s franchisee. “They’re so well maintained, and then with the whole new area that’s going to (be developed) down by the river” in the Bridge Street District.
“I think Dublin has done such a fabulous job (with the) walking trails,” she says. “It’s nice to get out of the office.”
Thomas’ other favorite part of spending so much time in Dublin is the flagship store – including the life-size statue of her father.
“The statue of my dad, Dave, is the best part, especially when I drive by and he waves at me,” she says with a little laugh.
Thomas grew up in central Ohio and attended college at the University of Florida before returning to be part of the family business.
As the namesake of the fast-food chain, and having appeared in a handful of commercials for the Wendy’s Company as an adult, she is occasionally recognized. When it happens locally, it doesn’t seem unusual.
“Elsewhere in the country, it’s kind of interesting,” she says. “It’s always been life. It’s OK.”
Dublin is a good location for Thomas 5 because of the easy access to Interstate 270, among other reasons, Thomas says.
“I would definitely recommend living and working in Dublin,” she says. “There are so many different neighborhoods that I think could fit anybody’s needs. … It’s just a great community, and I think the people in Dublin are just really good people.”
Buckeye football Coach Urban Meyer and his wife, Shelley, are the subjects of the most-recent ad, released in the summer as central Ohio starts thinking about the upcoming football season.
“When I came to Columbus to house-hunt, my Realtors took me all over the city and to all the different suburbs,” Shelley says. “We needed somewhere fairly private, preferably gated, yet I didn't want to be secluded because I love people. I remembered from my time here in the late ‘80s that Dublin was such a nice community and had access to a lot of things – restaurants, shopping, zoo, etc.”
The Meyers’ home on the golf course in a gated section of Muirfield Village was just what the couple was looking for, says Shelley, calling the location a “deal-maker.” They had never lived on a golf course or in a golf community before.
“My favorite thing about living in Dublin is Muirfield Village and the Memorial Tournament,” Urban says. “It’s something I really enjoy and look forward to each year.”
Compared to other communities where the Meyers have lived during Urban’s years as a coach, Dublin has many more resources, Shelley says.
“I can literally walk to some places for dinner. I love the trails all around that you can bike, run, walk on. I love how green it is. I love the parks,” she says. “People are really friendly with each other and it sort of feels ‘family-ish’ here even if you don’t know everyone.”
George Barrett - CEO of Fortune 500 company Cardinal Health, which is headquartered in Dublin - echoes their enthusiasm. Barrett and Car
dinal Health are the subjects of a forthcoming ad.
“Dublin’s been an extremely supportive community to our company and to our people, many of whom live in the area,” Barrett says. “Being in Dublin brings access to strong schools, outstanding public services and access to an increasingly vibrant downtown Columbus.”
Cardinal Health, a medical supply company, has been headquartered in Dublin since 1999 and has grown tremendously since then. The company had more than $100 billion in revenue last year.
“We think Dublin is conveniently located with great amenities and services and provides a great quality of life to our many employees who call Dublin home,” says Stephanie Pavol, a social media and public relations manager for the company. “Dublin has also been a great partner to us over the years and supported our growth.”
In addition to promoting City amenities, the ads also are a way of recognizing and thanking those who call Dublin home, Puskarcik says.
“From our perspective, it’s a nice way to be able to thank community leaders like the ones featured in the ads for not just what they do for Dublin, but generally they’re very philanthropic people, and it’s a nice way to be able to showcase that,” she says.
“This type of campaign couldn’t happen in a lot of other communities,” Puskarcik says. “We have been fortunate with the high-profile and recognizable people who have supported the campaign and who are willing to demonstrate their support of Dublin.”
Lisa Aurand is editor of Dublin Life Magazine. Feedback welcome at laurand@cityscenemediagroup.com.
in Life Magazine. Feedback welcome at laurand@cityscenemediagroup.com.
