LGA exec named Charlotte's BusinessWoman of the Year

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Peggy Brookhouse grew up enjoying commercials more than television shows, but the inspiration for her career contradicts that preference. Brookhouse, selected this week by Queens University as its 2019 Charlotte BusinessWoman of the Year, first became interested in advertising because of Darrin Stephens.

And who is Darrin Stephens, you ask? He was the fictional husband and advertising copywriter married to Samantha Stephens, a witch living as a mortal in the 1960s TV sitcom “Bewitched.” Brookhouse prefaced her mention of Stephens as her inspiration by saying, “This will date me.”

After assuring her interviewer that ad agencies are not as depicted on TV, Brookhouse pointed out that her job as president of local firm Luquire George Andrews remains a source of inspiration because it requires constant creativity and an ability to adjust to constant change.

Co-founder Steve Luquire hired Brookhouse in 1998 and, a decade later, named her agency president. The firm, known as LGA, has grown to 60 employees. Last year, it generated revenue of $9.8 million, fourth-highest on the Charlotte Business Journal’s list of the largest ad agencies in the region. Key clients include American Tire Distributors, Bojangles’, Colonial Life, and Visit North Carolina.

This is the 35th year Queens University has presented the BusinessWoman of the Year award. Winners are determined on the basis of a combination of contributions in the business, civic and cultural communities. Past recipients include Duke Energy CEO Lynn Good, Bank of America Chief Administrative Officer Andrea Smith, and Carol Lovin, executive vice president at Atrium Health.

This week, she spoke with CBJ at LGA's SouthPark offices about her award, giving back, and her perspective on opportunities for women in business in Charlotte. Read excerpts from that conversation here.

Cox Media Group