WILL GREGORY PR

Mayor's Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony

2011-12-09T16:19:00.000-08:00

Mayor's Christmas Tree all lit up!


Choir and audience

Janelle Monáe Speaking

Mayor Sly James Speaking

Janelle Monáe and Mayor Sly James

Janelle Monáe and Will Gregory

Paige Smith, Janelle Monáe and Sarah Cascio

This Thanksgiving, WGPR had the honor of being the chosen PR firm of the 2011 Mayor's Christmas Tree Lighting ceremony! Although this wasn't our first rodeo, we took great pleasure in working on this event with Mayor Sly James and his staff.

We invited American R&B/soul musician, Janelle Monáe (of Kansas City), to be the celebrity guest "light flipper" and had the best time before and after the ceremony chatting with her. This girl's style is just as amazing as her voice and performance skills!

The Mayor's Christmas Tree Fund would like to thank Ameristar Casino, Brady Enterprises, Burns and McDonnell, Cosentinos, Isle of Capri Casino, JE Dunn, Northland Regional Chamber of Commerce, and Spinkler Fitter Local Union 314 for their contributions!

For more information on the Mayor's Christmas Tree Fund please visit their Facebook page here.

Photo Credit: First five photos were taken by Eric Bowers.

Behind the Buzz: Will Gregory featured in 435 South Magazine!

2011-12-09T15:42:00.000-08:00

If you haven't already, you MUST go pick up the December issue of 435 South Magazine! Kimberly Stern wrote an awesome article about the top PR gurus in Kansas City and featured Will Gregory.

“Square one in my business: build relationships and get involved.” -Will Gregory

Check it out online here... Thank you Kimberly!

WaterFire Kansas City on Brush Creek

2011-11-11T10:55:00.000-08:00

Late last month we attended the 5th annual WaterFire Kansas City are instillation on Brush Creek on the Country Club Plaza. WaterFire Kansas City is a unique public art installation that uses the powerful combination of water, fire and music to build community and bring people together.

So, starting at dusk, a crowd of excited onlookers got ready to witness the lighting of 55 floating bonfires on Brush Creek. Mayor Sly James was there to light the torches, which initiated the boats to make their way down the creek.

There was a vast variety of live performances ranging from KC Swing and Tango Dancers to Quixotic Performance Fusion to Nathan Granner (tenor). The instillation was amazingly beautiful and it was such an amazing night.

Thank you to all who helped make this night so spectacular.

Photos of the night used in this post can be found here

-WG

Junior League of KC at Skyline Salon

2011-11-02T12:08:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago we had our Junior League of KC event at Skyline Salon.

Ladies of Junior League enjoyed appetizers from Blanc Burgers and wine from Cellar Rat. They also were given a class on holiday hair, tips on make-up and fashion from the hair and make-up stylists at Skyline Salon, and clothing from Clique Boutique, Banana Republic, and Standard Style Boutique.

The models looked stunning and the fashion tips were fantastic. What a fun night!

-WG

Grünauer's 2nd Annual Oktoberfest

2011-10-04T15:22:00.001-07:00

Live music, traditional food, and beer!

This past weekend was Grunauer's 2nd Annual Oktoberfest. This year the event was sponsored by Baron BMW, Hofbrau, Stiegl, and Ink Magazine.

The event was kicked off with a tradition keg tapping and the newly renovated biergarten was tented and operated as the food hub, which featured traditional Oktoberfest fare from bratwurst to pretzels to apple strudel and more.

During the day the music tent had live acts ranging from authentic German Dancers, polka bands and other family-friendly entertainment. At night there was a variety of Kansas City's notable jazz and rock performers including Miles Bonny, Mark Lowery with Drums, the Beachnutz, Festhaus-Musikanten, and Nauthatch 47.

The beer was amazing and the weekend was a great success.

Both tents served a full lineup of beers from Hofbräu, including their 2011 Oktoberfest brew.

This year Grunauer even had a brand new shotski.

What an amazing weekend.

- WGPR

Dead Poultry Society at the American Royal BBQ

2011-10-04T15:22:00.000-07:00

As most of you may already know, this past Friday was the American Royal BBQ, and of course the place to be was at the Dead Poultry Society party benefiting Young Variety - the children's charity.

There was a buffet of amazing barbeque and other foods provided by Will Jenny's and Blanc Burgers + Bottles, a complementary full bar, a state of the art mechanical bull with flashing red eyes, 120 cases of Red Bull, and DJ Mike Scott. We also had smoked Bourbon from The Rieger and Bombora cocktails.

This was definitely the place to be at the American Royal BBQ.

Thanks to all of our other sponsors who helped make this the biggest and best party of the year.

Thanks to Ink Magazine for providing us with such great pictures of the night.

-WGPR

Fashion's Night Out After Party at Blanc

2011-09-30T08:38:00.000-07:00

This September was Kansas City's first ever Fashion's Night Out. We were excited to see FNO make its way to Kansas City so we decided to celebrate by throwing an after party at Blanc Burgers + Bottles on the Country Club Plaza. Everyone was dressed to the nines and ready to honor the success of Kansas City's first ever FNO as they made their way to Blanc.

An after party is nothing without good music, which is why we had The Oxfords on the turntables. Leave it up to DC and Beat Broker to provide us with only the best beats to end the night to.

We also had giveaways from Standard Style and reverse happy hour specials in honor of Fashion's (first) Night Out in Kansas City.

It was so amazing to see everyone dressed in their best, and it was only fitting for the best dressed to be at Blanc. A big THANK YOU to Ink Magazine for capturing such spectacular photos of the night. Take a look:

(Thanks again to Emily Baldwin for providing giveaways from Standard Style)

-WGPR

Mad About Style

2011-09-30T07:43:00.000-07:00

Beginning late this August, Banana Republic launched a line of women's and men's clothing inspired by the popular television series Mad Men. In celebration of this 1960's Mad Men inspired clothing line, we held a launch party at the Banana Republic on the Country Club Plaza.

All tickets sales and donations were presented to Waterfire Kansas City.

Red Stag provided the event with Vodka Martinis and Manhattans.

Ink Magazine was there to make sure all the excitement for the new clothing line was photographed. This 1960's Mad Men inspired look got many event goers to play the part.

Overall it was a night full of awesome clothes, awesome drinks, and awesome people.

- WGPR

Bastille Day 2011

2011-07-07T10:44:00.000-07:00

Bonjour!

If you missed Bastille Day 2010 at Westport Cafe and Bar do not fret.... owner, Aaron Confessori and team WGPR, are bringing it back this year and it will twice as fun this time around!

Bastille Day 2011 will once again benefit Young Variety KC, have delicious food and drink specials and feature DJ Eric Coomes...further more their neighbor- The Union- has decided to take part in the festivities and will have local band, Making Movies preforming.

All of the details are below on the flyer and check out the pictures from last year!

Nous espérons vous y voir!

-WGPR

Event attendee's enjoying bar specials

Folks from Young Variety at the door!

Dj Eric Coomes spinning French beats...

Alliance Project Launch

2011-07-04T20:17:00.000-07:00

As of July 4, 2011 Alterra Bank has launched their first annual Alliance Project. This initiative provides the opportunity for one young company in the Kansas City area to win:

-$10,000 in an Alterra Bank checking account
-Complimentary office space from Bizperc
-A scholarship to the Fastrac GrowthVenture program from The Kauffman Foundation
-A custom logo from Whiskey Design
-Legal support from Stinson Morrison Hecker, LLP
-A year of PR services from Will Gregory Public Relations
-Tax and HR support from CBIZ
-Messaging strategy from Kazoo Marketing
-A year's supply of coffee from The Roasterie

There will be a kickoff event August 4th at the Kansas City Central Library (14 West 10th Street Kansas City, MO 64105) to cover all qualification and registration details. If you will not be able to attend the meeting, simply register at the link below to stay up to date with Alterra Bank's Alliance Project.

http://www.alterrabank.com/alliance/

-WGPR

Skyline.EDU is underway!

2011-06-29T11:23:00.000-07:00

Skyline Salon in downtown KC recently held their first Skyline.EDU class that consisted of an Intro to Blowout session for those who wanted to learn how to blow out their hair. The class was instructed by Skyline Salon's own Creative Director, Arlen Wickstrum and Senior Stylist Josh Crumley. The class was B.Y.O.D (bring your own blow dryer) to let the ladies learn hands-on. This was just one of the many future fun and creative hands-on sessions to learn a great ways to style your hair for whatever occasion or season it is.

Sessions include the class, a delectable snack, a glass of wine to enjoy, and some fun sample products from the salon!

Photo below is one of Skyline.EDU's students (Liz Giffin) that attended the blow out class - it was held from 5-6PM on June 18th. The ladies loved it! Skyline is now planning to do a themed class every month.

ATTENTION those whom are interested! - The next Skyline.EDU class focuses on showing the ladies how to get those fun and sexy summer waves. It will be held Friday, July 15th at 6PM! These classes are truly unique as you can learn from the best stylists in the city, grab a snack and have a drink to wind down from the day. And remember: Space is limited!

If every summer you find yourself wanting beautiful wavy locks like these, this is the class for you!

In addition to the class, one of Skyline's own stylists, Angi Ouderkirk will be demonstrating on a Skyline.EDU student live on NBC Action News starting tomorrow (June 30th). Be sure to sign-up for the class as space is limited and this is such a unique opportunity! Call 816.221.2001 to reserve your space today.

We hope to see you there!

-WGPR

Alterra Bank Alliance Project

2011-06-28T08:47:00.000-07:00

Alterra Bank will be celebrating the 4th of July by launching their Alliance Project which will redefine independence for one Kansas City start up company. Sign up at the link below to stay up to date with the project.

http://www.alterrabank.com/alliance/

-WGPR

Sporting KC - "the talk of the town!"

2011-06-09T10:39:00.000-07:00

Sporting Kansas City has certainly been the "talk of the town" as they present their brand new stadium at Livestrong Sporting Park tonight for the home opener!

Teal Bunbury, the said to be "next great American soccer star," was featured on the cover of Ink Magazine yesterday. To promote the team and their home opener, WGPR & Ink handed out the magazines that included two tickets to a single game during the season and a mini schedule of games for this year. A few players made an appearance to sign autographs and take pictures with fans.
Photo below: Eric Kronberg (Sporting KC goalie) signs an autograph for a fan!

Photo below: WGPR "sporting" their Sporting KC gear at JC Nichols fountain yesterday as they helped hand out Ink magazines and tickets for the public.

Don't miss out on the biggest event of the summer and long awaited home opening match tonight at Livestrong Sporting Park vs the Chicago Fire! Pre-match concert and entertainment featuring Kansas City's own The Republic Tigers LIVE on the Sprint Plaza. Entertainment starts at 6PM and the game kicks off at 9PM.

-WGPR