Michael Layne has been serving established and growing companies in the Detroit metropolitan area since the early 1980s. He has provided strategic communications counsel to numerous industry leaders as an extension of their corporate brands.

As a founding partner of Marx Layne & Company in 1987, Layne has been instrumental in building Michigan’s largest independently owned public relations agency. Layne attributes the growth and stability of Marx Layne & Company to the development and retention of a diverse
client base and the careful building of a dedicated and capable team of public relations professionals.

A bona fide foodie, Layne’s love of food, wine and entertainment has helped position the agency as the premier provider of communications services. Furthermore, his work for leading nonprofits, municipal officials and area business leaders has put him clearly in the center of activity throughout Michigan and beyond.

A senior vice president, Leslie Pardo has expertise in several industry sectors, including restaurants, retail, education, hotels, professional services and health care. Pardo utilizes a strong strategic and analytical approach in meeting client communication objectives.

As lead of the hospitality division at Marx Layne, Pardo devises multifaceted public relations campaigns that keep her clients’ brands top-of-mind. She works directly with owner/operators, local and corporate management, franchise associations and outside legal counsel.

During her 20-year tenure at Marx Layne, Pardo has specialized in media relations, digital media, orchestrating community events and adversity communications management, product launches and store openings, and coordinating large-scale festivals and events.

Michael Odom has nearly 20 years of experience providing marketing, public relations and event planning services for clients in several industry sectors, including hospitality, retail, nonprofit and healthcare.

His expertise includes grand openings, ribbon cuttings, groundbreakings; media relations for events of all sizes and sustaining communication campaigns; orchestrating all aspects of special events, from A/V and entertainment to food & beverage and scripting; and crisis communications management.

Odom is Hispanic, bilingual (Spanish) and maintains strong ties to the Hispanic community throughout Michigan. He is chairman of the board for the Southwest Detroit Business Association, a nonprofit organization that supports business owners and residents in the state’s largest Hispanic populated area which is highly regarded for its restaurants and entertainment venues. Odom is a board member at large for the Detroit Regional LGBT Chamber of Commerce, a nonprofit organization that works to certify, promote and support LGBT businesses.

Lana Mini is a veteran print and digital media journalist and editor with more than 20 years of experience covering local and national news, business and human-interest stories. Prior to joining Marx Layne & Company, Mini served as a full-time writer and editor with Gannett Newspapers, Inc. (Detroit Free Press and Observer & Eccentric Newspapers) and a journalist with Digital First Media (Macomb Daily, Oakland Press, Press & Guide). Her news coverage of state government and general interest stories – including environmental stories surrounding the Great Lakes — earned her numerous awards by the Michigan Press Association and Society of Professional Journalists.

Mini also has worked in the nonprofit sector as a public relations coordinator and social media writer, creating content that attracted positive community engagement. Through her deep relationships in newsrooms throughout the region, combined with years of journalistic experience, Mini has a keen understanding of what the news editors and readers want, which lands her clients the positive media coverage they need to increase brand awareness.