Chapel Hill, NC, Sept. 22, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Rivers Agency, a full-service advertising, branding and digital agency headquartered in Chapel Hill, has been ranked the fifth-largest advertising agency in the Triangle by the Triangle Business Journal.
Published Sept. 4, the annual list ranks agencies by the number of advertising professionals based in the Triangle. With 36 local advertising professionals, Rivers moved up from No. 6 in the previous ranking to No. 5 on the publication’s 2026 list.
“We’ve grown in some really meaningful ways over the past year,” said Lauren Rivers, founder and CEO of Rivers Agency. “We are taking on larger, more complex assignments, expanding what we can offer clients and continuing to build a team that can deliver at a really high level. Moving up to No. 5 is a reflection of that momentum, and I am incredibly proud of where we’re headed.”
Rivers’ recent growth includes being named agency of record for Truliant Federal Credit Union and adding Trillium Health Resources, one of North Carolina’s largest managed care organizations. The agency has also expanded its capabilities with a dedicated influencer marketing practice, partnered with the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund on public relations and website work and continued its work with Salesforce supporting Dreamforce, the company’s annual flagship annual event.
Chief Creative Officer and Head of Creative Strategy Sarah Owens leads creative strategy across Rivers, helping clients turn business challenges into brand strategies, campaigns and experiences that move their organizations forward. Working across strategy, creative and account teams, Owens helps ensure that business objectives and audience insights shape the work from the beginning.
“As our clients and assignments have grown, so has the level of strategic thinking they expect from us,” said Owens. “We’re asking bigger questions upfront about the business, the audience and what the work actually needs to accomplish. Bringing that thinking together with strong creative is where we’ve really evolved as an agency, and it’s allowing us to take on more ambitious, more meaningful work for our clients.”
Founded in 1993, Rivers works with organizations across financial services, healthcare, technology, nonprofit and other sectors, bringing together brand strategy, creative, advertising, digital, social media, public relations and web development under one roof.
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About Rivers Agency
Rivers Agency is an advertising, branding, design, digital, social, PR and web development agency with locations in Raleigh and Chapel Hill, North Carolina. Since 1993, our teams have been creating integrated campaigns, innovative marketing solutions and user-friendly web experiences for B2C and B2B clients on both a national and local scale.
We’re proud that our creative and web development work has earned accolades from the Addy Awards, Communicator Awards, MarCom Awards, Davey Awards and W3 Awards, and our agency is recognized as one of the largest advertising agencies by the Triangle Business Journal. Our true passion is working with clients and using our creativity to seize opportunities and conquer challenges so we can deliver results and exceed your expectations.
To see our work or learn more, visit riversagency.com
Lauren Rivers Founder and CEO, Rivers Agency 919-932-9985 lauren@riversagency.com
