AKHIA

Akhia is a Northeast Ohio strategic communications agency, based in Hudson, that builds brands for manufacturing and technical companies, working "from the insight out." Jan Gusich founded it in 1996 at her dining room table with one employee and a few clients, and it grew from Akhia Public Relations into Akhia Marketing and Communications, then Akhia Communications, and now simply Akhia. Ben Brugler, who joined in its early years, became majority owner and CEO when Gusich retired in 2018.

The name, pronounced "Ah-Key-Ah," loosely refers to a town in Greece known for creating the first ionic pillars.