As the founder and creative director of Lentini Design & Marketing, Inc., in Los Angeles, California, since 1990, Hilary Lentini has won more than 175 national design awards from Graphic Design USA, received the coveted Comerica Bank Los Angeles Lakers Woman of Entrepreneurship Award, and been named Woman of Influence by LA Confidential Magazine. Proud of her women-led graphic design firm, she believes the accolades stem, in part, from establishing a collaborative and nurturing relationship with her team, which allows them to feel safe and at their best creatively. Ms. Lentini also credits herself and her team for staying adept at identifying what is special and unique about each of their clients, most of whom seek out the company. She is especially talented at creating and translating messaging for and about each customer that resonates with their intended audiences, becoming their cheerleader, and reinvigorating their teams.
Ms. Lentini cites her most notable achievement as becoming a leader in her state and local chapters of the National Association of Women Business Owners in which she learned how to advocate for women in business. She is grateful that her own company has lasted for more than 30 years and survived the pandemic, a challenging time for businesses everywhere, and attributes the secret to her success to the notion that if it scares her, she must do it, pursue it, and trust in herself. Earning a Bachelor of Fine Arts in communication design from the University of Illinois Chicago, Ms. Lentini’s lifelong passion for graphic design, learning something new every day, having fun, and exercising her superpower of problem-solving, are the other keys to her achievements. She fondly recalls as a child designing typefaces and t-shirts for fun, not yet knowing that the process had a name.
During the next decade, Ms. Lentini said she will explore ways to expand the offerings and capabilities of Lentini Design & Marketing, Inc., including the possibility of adding a social awareness component that would provide opportunities for under-employed or formerly incarcerated individuals to learn or rebuild skillsets. Married with two daughters, Ms. Lentini has been civically active in various volunteer roles for many years, including as a pro bono art director at the Larchmont Charter School, a board member of the Pacifica Community Charter School, and an appointee to the California Workforce Development Board.
