When Lestari Kusumawardani, marketing manager for the Oklahoma City Ballet, wanted to grow exposure for April’s Ballet Ball Gala, she called all of the gifted women she knew.
The group of friends included Masha Andrianova Largent, a financial analyst from Moscow; Sicilia Talavera, a paralegal from Oklahoma and first-generation American; Lauren Cross, Oklahoma-born and raised and part-time creator/consultant with @simplylifewithlo; and Melissa “Mel” Drake, photographer and fourth grade teacher originally from Houston.
Andrianova Largent recalled, “At the ball, the five of us spent time together and realized how much we genuinely liked one another. We began texting and group chatting every day. We began working to empower each other.”
This group of talented women decided to form a digital marketing company called The 405 Girls. Cross said, “We realized that together, we had the skills to become an incredible marketing company from top to bottom.” Throughout the summer, they have been taking clients and working on a soft launch of their website, the405girls.com. On Oct. 16, their website and digital marketing skills will be open to everyone.
“Whatever a company or a client might need, we have the skills to provide,” Cross continued. “We are ready to work directly with brands who are just launching, whether they need videos pushed out to a wide variety of people, or whether they need photos, or help assembling a blog. We’re here to assist a company that needs consultations about social media representation or other kinds of brand representation.”
“We are who you should come to,” Drake said. “We five are better together because of our shared diverse talents. We have a broad (number) of platforms among the five of us. We can reach so many.”
With tailored content and a personal touch, each woman in The 405 Girls brings her own niche interests, expertise and background to the table — along with a love for Oklahoma.
Andrianova Largent is deeply experienced in travel, lifestyle and food, and remains a passionate advocate for Oklahoma cuisine. “I traveled to Singapore last summer, and they say that’s the best ramen in the world, but I think that Gorō Ramen here in the Paseo may be a little better,” she said.
Talavera is an expert in fashion. Kusumawardani, who came to the United States in 2001 from Jakarta, Indonesia, has her finger on everything that includes the arts in Oklahoma City. Cross is a content creator and consultant for topics touching on ADHD and motherhood. Drake fortuitously fell in love with Oklahoma City, and her interests are cocktails, travel and photography.
The 405 Girls have diversity in parenthood as well. The group includes working mothers, stay-at-home mothers and women who choose not to be mothers. They found that these differences bring them closer together as they strive to support one another, and they believe it will help them serve women in business across the spectrum of choice and circumstance.
As The 405 Girls begin to make their mark on Oklahoma City, they also have statewide and nationwide plans to fully represent the 405 in the marketing realm.
the405girls.com | Instagram @the405girls
