PLUMB HEAVY
Living in the capital city of Edmonton, Alberta, Bernie Roessler of Plumb Heavy Design gets a lot of government work. His most recent challenge came from a children’s services agency: Encourage 16- to 22-year-olds in (or recently free from) the foster care system—those most distrustful of the government—to talk to social workers and apply for a government-funded university scholarship. An informational packet was out of the question, so Plumb Heavy got to work on a comic book featuring the well-educated, former foster kid, Ed Ventures. The campaign, a work in progress, will be supported by a series of posters, a website, and a reminder to apply: a magnetic poetry kit. www.plumbheavy.ca

BRIDGING THE GAP
Two of the richest men in American history, Bill Gates and Warren BuΩett, are members of the American Contract Bridge League. Besides the competitive allure of the game, more than 12,000 players each year are joining the league due to ACBL’s deft, in-house marketing department. Outreach campaigns like “Bridge in Your Neighborhood” provide online templates of posters, print ads, and business cards for its 170,000 members to download and distribute at town meetings, craft fairs, and local libraries, where potential players may be loitering. Membership is the highest since 1996, but with the average member age at 65, ACBL is preparing a separate campaign to introduce the game to highschool and college communities this fall. www.acbl.org

WALES WATCHING
American designer Jeff Gill and his Welsh wife Christine left Tucson, Ariz., in 2000 to live in her native Wales. Gill didn’t know anyone, but set out looking for clients while working part-time at a shoe shop. It’s taken four years, but now his design studio, Tom’s Novelty Meats, has a steady client base including The Patchwork Traditional Food Company, makers of gourmet pâté. Gill’s brand redesign has helped to push Patchwork from wholesale mainstay to the shelves of upscale retail. Patchwork makes 64 different varieties of pâté (including Prince Charles’ organic brand Duchy Originals); however, people tend to find a favorite and stick with it. The idea behind the latest poster campaign is to let customers know there are plenty to choose from. www.noveltymeats.co.uk

FILL ’ER UP
The Short North neighborhood of Columbus, Ohio, is reputed to be “The Greenwich Village of the Midwest” where coffeehouses, bistros, and art galleries have been flourishing since the early ’90s. In 1993, after studying art in Berlin and working at Sotheby’s in New York, Rebecca Ibel took advantage of the relatively low real estate prices, found an old renovated gas station and opened her own gallery. Business is good. She recently opened another gallery in the new downtown development of Miranova, and she’s pulling powerful talent into both. This spring, she’s showing new compound photography from Charles LaBelle and kitschy representational paintings featuring David Humphrey’s stuffed animals. www.rebeccaibel.com