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SHORTCUTS NEIGHBORS 70 C A R M E L M A G A Z I N E • W I N T E R 2 0 1 5 Mar keting an Impressive Vintage C armel has long attracted movers and shakers. Powerful men and women are pulled here; perhaps because our area's laid-back, mel- low vibe allows a respite from pressure-cooker careers. One such new- comer is Vintage Foster, founder and President of AMF Media Group, a full-service marketing and communications firm headquartered in San Ramon. A native of Columbus, Ohio, he first visited the Monterey Peninsula as a teenager, en route to watch Ohio State face USC in the Rose Bowl. "I fell in love with the place," Foster says. Prior to AMF, Foster led a meteoric newspaper career, from the newsrooms of the Charlotte Observer and Detroit Free Press to the publisher and CEO's desks at the East Bay Business Times and Silicon Valley Business Journal. It was while at the latter that his love for the Peninsula deepened. "I created a column, 'Beyond the Valley,' chronicling business news from this area," he says. "That provided a legitimate business reason to be here once a month." Since 2007, his company has garnered an impressive and diverse client list that includes big brands such as Alameda Health System, Jamba Juice, Blue Shield, Men's Wearhouse, Hewlett-Packard and the Oakland Raiders. This guy doesn't let grass grow under his feet. Since Foster purchased a Carmel Highlands home in 2014, he's inked deals with The Carmel Bach Festival and the Monterey Museum of Art—creating new reasons to be here as much as possible. "It would be great if I needed to spend 35 to 40 percent of my time in the Carmel area," the golf-lov- ing executive says. "It's a market with many sophisti- cated and dynamic businesses that don't have access to marketing resources of the same caliber…that's perfect for an agency like mine." A market the size of this simply can't support a full-service agency like AMF. "We can bring the extensive resources of a big Bay-Area agency to a smaller market like this," he says. For more information visit www.amfmedia.com. —Michael Chatfield One of Carmel's newest residents looks to expand AMF Media, his award-winning full-service mar- keting firm—to include Monterey County clients. Vintage Foster is equally at home in a boardroom as on a golf course and performs expertly in both. Photo: Kelli Uldall