CEO + Publisher
Billy J. Strawter, Jr.
Born in Georgia and raised in Midland, Michigan, Billy Strawter Jr, has been a Metro-Detroiter since 1996.
He owns the full-service marketing agency MILO, headquartered in Detroit, is a partner in Busted Bra Shop with 6 locations in Detroit, Rochester, and Chicago, along with his newest opportunity, BLAC, Inc. where Billy serves as the CEO and Publisher of BLAC Detroit magazine and BLAC Media, a full service production company.
Guided by natural curiosity and constantly questions “How can we take something, and how can we make it better? How can we grow this?” Those answers are leading BLAC to reach new heights, including community involvement and partnerships, expansion into other markets, and evolving BLAC into a holistic lifestyle brand.
Team at BLAC - Black, Life, Arts & Culture
Ann Duke
Associate PublisherAnn Duke is a veteran of the magazine business with over 20 years’ experience on both the business and creative sides. As one of the founding staffers at Hour Media, she was instrumental in the launch of numerous publications including Hour Detroit and Detroit Home. While marketing director at Tapper’s Jewelry, she developed their very successful Jewelry Stars program for Tapper’s Accent magazine. By day, Duke is the director of philanthropy for Habitat for Humanity of Oakland County. For this issue, as feature editor for “A Night at the Opera,” she was able to tap into her love of architecture, fashion and Detroit history.
MILO Detroit, Inc
Creative DirectionMILO was founded by a serial entrepreneur and dreamer who wanted to do cool stuff. Billy Strawter Jr. not only found a way to do cool stuff, but to do it better than anyone else in the digital space. With a traditional marketing background in public relations, integrated marketing and corporate communications, Billy seamlessly translated what he knew about media and messaging into a full-service advertising agency, creating unique innovative solutions for clients.
Victoria Webb
Director Of Business OperationsMost people in business talk about ROI. Victoria believes that ROA (Return On Attention) is what drives consumer behavior. “We need to go from marketing at people to marketing for people.” She is an internationally recognized marketing leader specializing in branding, strategic focus, equity building and growth through business development, integrated marketing campaigns and true innovation. Victoria has worked with companies of all size and scope, including Unilever, SC Johnson, L'Oreal, Hasbro, Lund International, Ecolab, Akzo Nobel and American Axle & Manufacturing.