ACP Brands
About Us
ACP Brands
About Us
At ACP Brands, we provide the chance for our owners to find fulfillment in helping their communities in different ways– local businesses, and seniors and their families.
Because ACP Brands is privately held, our owners are in the driver’s seat and have the flexibility to make their business their own, with the help of the leadership team and premier partners from each industry.
When you join the ACP Brands franchise family, you’re going into business for yourself, not by yourself.
Our Team
Richard Houden
President & CEO
Richard Houden
President and CEO, Richard Houden, has a rich history of entrepreneurial spirit that started when he was in his teenage years. From running his own lawn mowing business in his neighborhood in Madison, Wisconsin, to painting houses throughout college, it always seemed that business and salesmanship were rooted in his DNA.
After only five years in the corporate world, Richard found himself filled with a desire to create and run businesses of his own.
Over the last 25 years, Richard has done just that through the establishment of two successful franchise systems.
In 1996, City Publications was created in Atlanta, Georgia. City Publications is a direct mail company that was originally intended to be focused in regional sales. However, when an associate suggested running an ad for a licensee rather than an employee, the idea to become a franchisor was born.
Over time, Richard began to notice a pattern in regular clients of City Publications locations across the country: in-home senior care. At the time, Richard and his siblings were dealing with aging parents and looking for solutions to help their parents be taken care of safely and effectively, while maintaining comfort in their home.
After interviewing numerous home care customers who were advertising with City Publications throughout the United States, Richard realized that he was already equipped with the tools to solve the biggest challenge in the home care business: lead generation and customer acquisition-- City Publications' areas of expertise.
Given the relevance to his personal life, when the opportunity presented itself to acquire ameriCARE, it felt as if the picture was becoming clear. In 2013, Richard added ameriCARE to his franchise concept portfolio and infused it with numerous components of the City Publications model to strengthen all aspects of the business.
The ameriCARE model demonstrates a deep understanding of a strong referral base, a comprehensive implementation of multi-faceted advertising, and a robust Search Engine Optimization program. Each of these elements has created a system that results in an incredible opportunity to get a quick start while benefiting from unit economics.
In 2020, Richard created ACP Brands to serve both of his franchise concepts, City Publications and ameriCARE.
Through his extensive experience, Houden has been able to build a successful system that provides individuals the chance to find the joy, satisfaction, and total independence of owning and running their very own business.
ACP Brands prides itself on being privately held, having no investors, zero debt, and maintaining two brands with healthy financials. Each of these factors allows ACP brands to establish and exemplify a culture that is concerned with unit economics over the extreme growth and corporate profitability that most brands prioritize.
Just one conversation with Richard Houden makes it clear what sets ACP Brands apart: a strong franchise family rooted in a system that provides its network with exceptional communication tools, lifetime coaching and training, and a culture that empowers the individual.'
Nives Stanetti-Prantl
Director of Marketing & Operations
Nives Stanetti-Prantl
Nives has been part of the City Publications Franchise Team since 2004, proudly serving her Franchisor, Franchise Owners and their clients. She started as the Director of Art and Design. At the time, her main responsibility included managing the Creatives Team as well as developing innovative branding ideas for both her Franchisor and Franchisees’ national presence.
Under the leadership of the ACP Brands CEO, she was able to achieve numerous goals towards creating the cutting edge branding implementation of national media outreach and has made the City Publications Franchise Group recognized as a one-of-a-kind innovative marketing leader in the advertising industry.
The ameriCARE In-home Care rebranding of “a new kind of care” has been another great success due to the amazing support of the ACP Brands team.
Nives’ passion lies in developing and implementing internal sales & marketing tactics at both the corporate and franchise level to help Franchisees become unique marketers. With the great knowledge and help of our corporate team, she is able to work closely with both brands, ameriCARE and City Publications Franchise Owners, taking them through the path to success much quicker.
Nives continues to serve ACP Brands as the Director of Marketing and Communications where she continues to closely work on creative and advertising production, media buying, digital outreach, internal and external sales coaching, and public relations.
When she is not spending time preparing ideas on innovations with our Franchisees and the ACP Brands corporate team, she enjoys her time with her family. Traveling, playing soccer and baking with her daughters and husband is what she enjoys very much!
Anna Bradley
Director of Franchise Relations & Development
Anna Bradley
Anna joined ACP Brands in 2017 as the Director of Franchise Relations and Development for the AmeriCare franchise concept. Anna oversees the Awards Process and franchisee onboarding training programs.
Prior to joining ACP Brands, Anna was a consultant for one of the largest practice management consulting firms in the industry. She worked with private medical and dental practices throughout the U.S. to drive patient growth and retention, to develop marketing strategies, and to help doctors create and implement a vision for their business and team. Anna also has experience in content marketing, event marketing and management, as well as fundraising. She holds a journalism degree from the University of Georgia. (Go dawgs!)
When Anna isn't working, she enjoys spending time with her husband and chasing after their 18-month-old twin girls.
Carol Quinn
Accounting Manager
Carol Quinn
Affectionately known as our, “Quickbooks Dojo,” Carol originally hails from Rochester, New York. Carol has a degree in Accounting and has previously held positions in internal audit for a medium-sized company, as well as manager of corporate finance for a Fortune 500 company.
Carol has been the Accounting Manager with ACP Brands for 14 years. As an Advanced Certified QuickBooks Pro Advisor, Carol has been working for small businesses since moving from Northern Virginia to Atlanta in 1996. With ACP Brands, Carol trains and supports franchise owners on Quickbooks software and manages Corporate accounting.
When asked about her favorite part of the job, Carol says she enjoys helping our franchisees achieve their goals of owning their own successful businesses.
Caroline McRaney
Project Manager
Caroline McRaney
Caroline is the most recent addition to the ACP Brands Leadership Team. Since joining the team in the summer of 2020, Caroline has helped jumpstart programs to expand the infrastructure and resources available to franchisees in the ACP Brands Family.
A classroom teacher by trade, Caroline uses her background to help develop and facilitate training programs for new franchisees and incoming Appointment Assistants.
With attention to detail and a knack for making the complex seem simple, Caroline has enjoyed overlaying her instructional skills into the world of franchising.
Caroline attended the College of Charleston and just couldn’t bring herself to leave after graduation. In her spare time, she loves exploring the Charleston area with her husband and hound dog, Bruce.