Helios Partners last week closed its Atlanta office. The int'l sports consulting firm, which has worked extensively on Olympic bids and sponsorship consulting, had been headquartered in Atlanta since it was founded in '04. A total of 10 employees who worked in the office were let go by the agency. Helios’ lead partners Terrence Burns and Chris Welton left the agency in '12 after a rift emerged with their parent company, Paris-based Amaury Group, which acquired Helios in '08. Former Helios COO Chris Sanders and VP Lou Lauria left the agency after the Sochi Games. Helios will maintain its offices based in Europe and Asia. The company’s website is now in French and part of the Amaury site. Its client roster includes: Arsenal, UFC and the WTA. Atlanta-based Around The Rings first reported Helios’ Atlanta office closed. In addition to shuttering its U.S. operations, Helios ended its joint-venture with N.Y.-based Glideslope. The agencies partnered in '11 to create HGS and advise The Dow Chemical Company on the marketing and activation of its worldwide Olympic sponsorship program. Glideslope now will handle Dow’s business independently. It has hired three former Helios employees working on the Dow account: Corneille Burt, Alexa Jackson and Li Li Leung. Glideslope President Dave Mingey said, “While we’re thrilled they’re part of the Glideslope family, and we’re excited about the opportunity to continue the growth at Glideslope that we began with HGS.”
