A highly regarded advertising executive and sales leader, Ron Spears serves as Director of National Advertising at AM New York, a free daily newspaper in New York City. A division of the Newsday Media Group, owned by Cablevision, AM New York now carries a daily circulation of 345,053 copies, ranking first overall in circulation among all New York City daily newspapers. Recruited and hired to move to New York City by the Newsday Media Group from his executive position at the Los Angeles Times in 2006, Ron Spears was tasked with building, developing and leading the national advertising sales force of the then only three-year-old AM New York.

In order to accomplish this monumental task, Ron Spears established a dynamic, unified advertising sales strategy that pitted amNewYork uniquely against such newspaper powerhouses as the New York Times and Daily News. He developed the process, goals, and compensation plans for AM New York’s 48 associates, comprising the national, major retail, and classified advertising departments. Ron Spears traveled nationwide to lead product training, motivate advertising staff, and support sales calls for AM New York, establishing new client relationships across all categories of business, including scores of non-print advertisers. Ron Spears conceived and developed go-to market strategies for all national advertising verticals, giving his regional directors and account managers compelling stories that lead to breaking unheard of categories of business such as television networks, luxury goods, fragrance, and fashion – none of which had investment in any newspapers outside of the NY Times and LA Times. Ron Spears also served as a senior team member at AM New York on marketing and brand growth initiatives, and was the lead management partner on developing and selling mobile and digital product extensions.

Prior to his tenure at AM New York, Ron Spears served as an advertising executive at The Los Angeles Times for nine years. Noted for his superior rapport building skills and creative marketing mind, Ron Spears produced dramatic results from year one, taking an under producing Glendale territory and turning it into the second largest revenue territory in the San Fernando Valley office. Ron Spears was quickly recognized as a gifted seller and top level producer, earning him visibility across the organization and the 1998 Rookie of the Year award. After three impressive years in the SFV office, Ron Spears was promoted to run the regional major accounts desk at the age of 27. After six months, Ron Spears had turned the majors desk around and was tapped by the downtown office, promoted again, this time to Times Mirror Square where he was responsible for the LA Times key retail accounts, making him the youngest account manager in the downtown offices. Ron Spears oversaw the daily advertising operations for key account sectors such as home furnishings, home improvement, and department stores for the next three years, earning Salesman of the Year award in 2002, his first full year downtown. Finally, Ron Spears was handpicked to manage The Los Angeles Times largest advertising account, department store Macy’s at $22 million investment level, and again had immediate impact, developing and closing a $550,000 re-branding campaign, earning him his second Salesman of the Year award in 2005. Ron Spears started his advertising career at the San Bernardino County Sun for Gannett after being heavily recruited out of the University of Missouri School of Journalism where he graduated third in his class, earning Cum Laude honors and finishing his journalism degree with a 3.7 GPA. Ron Spears was also Vice President of his Mizzou fraternity and modeled professionally in St Louis, Kansas City, and Chicago.

Ron Spears resides in New York City today and still maintains a residence in Hermosa Beach California.