BRC Imagination Arts, a full-service strategy, design, and production company that transforms how people feel, think, and connect, has a portfolio that spans 45 years of success and hundreds of celebrated cultural destinations and brand experiences worldwide. Today, it announces the completion of an ownership transition.
Founder Bob Rogers will continue as an active central presence and advocate for BRC both outward-facing and within the company.
Ownership of the company has transferred to members Christian Lachel, chief creative officer; Carmel Lewis, president; Matthew Solari and Brad Shelton, vice presidents of story and creative; formalising a structure that reflects how BRC has been operating for some time.
For Rogers, the transition is not new, but a recognition of the leadership the four have been providing for some time.
"I’m especially proud, as are all of us at BRC, to be working alongside the co-owner team that has been leading this company," he says.
"Between them they have over a century of experience at BRC. For some time, they have been running the company day-to-day, so this important step is more of an acknowledgement of something that has already been successfully happening.
"Our commitment to BRC’s values and story-driven craft, our Magic with Heart, continues.
"And it is a real joy that these four, who have honed their distinct but complementary skillsets alongside one another for decades, share a deep respect and admiration for what each brings to the partnership."
Left to right: Brad Shelton, vice president of story and creative; Carmel Lewis, president; Christian Lachel, chief creative officer; and Matthew Solari, vice president of story and creative. BRC Imagination Arts.Image courtesy of BRC Imagination Arts
The completion of the transition follows a plan that Rogers developed over the last 15 years, and a public commitment BRC made in 2022, when the company outlined its intention to evolve its leadership structure from within rather than through a sale to an outside entity.
Doing it this way ensures stability, continuity, and the continuation of the values and standards that have built the BRC brand.
A people-first philosophy, carried forward
BRC was founded 45 years ago by Rogers, a former Disneyland magician and Imagineer, whose understanding of audiences, and of what moves them, became the philosophical foundation of the company.
That concept, the belief that every great experience begins deep in the heart of the audience, has guided BRC's work across hundreds of projects and more than four decades.
His forthcoming book, titled Deep Story, will be published on 8 September, 2026, and represents the formal codification of that philosophy for the wider industry.
The leadership team continues to be shaped by that philosophy. Lachel has spent decades translating the art of storymaking into a discipline rooted in craft and human understanding.
Lewis has been at the heart of BRC's leadership for over a quarter century. Shelton and Solari have delivered some of BRC's most groundbreaking projects across brand, culture, and entertainment.
"BRC has always been a people-first company," says Lachel. "It is how we work, how we treat each other, and how we treat the clients who trust us with their most ambitious projects. Bob built that culture, and it is an honor for us to carry it forward. Story, magic and craft stay at the heart of everything we do."
Lewis says: "One mark of distinction at BRC is the relationships, with each other, with our clients, with the work itself. We sit down and eat together. We solve challenges together.
"We share a deeply rooted passion for our clients and the teams who contribute and support every aspect of BRC and the projects we create for audiences around the world."
Proudly independent
BRC has remained independently owned and operated since its founding 45 years ago. This ownership transition protects that.
“Independence has always given BRC the freedom to do what is best for our clients, to make decisions based on what the work needs and what audiences deserve, without compromise,” says Lachel.
Shelton, who has spent more than two decades at the company, speaks to what that trust means in practice. "The relationships we have with clients have been built over generations of doing work with purpose, integrity and a commitment to excellence.
"That trust deserves to be honored, and it will be. Nothing about how we approach a project changes."
Magic with Heart
Magic with Heart is BRC's organising philosophy, the belief that imagination and precision belong together and that the best work moves people emotionally while delivering measurable results.
For Rogers, the transition itself is a living demonstration of it: "With this announcement, BRC is embracing the people-first values that have always been at the center of everything we do and create.
"BRC is walking the walk. The fact we are transitioning leadership to our internal team members rather than an outside organization is a living example of our commitment to Magic with Heart."
Shelton speaks to what that means for audiences. "What BRC does every day is create moments of awe and genuine connection. The real magic is in our ability to bring people together around a story. This transition makes possible the continuity that allows us to keep doing this work, at this standard, with this team."
Solari adds: "To create those moments takes Deep Story. It takes craft, precision, and the sense of enchantment that has always been BRC's signature. With this transition, we carry that forward."
What comes next
"We chose to make this announcement now because BRC is in a strong and confident position," says Lachel. "The transition and the momentum are not separate stories. They are the same one."
BRC has recently received recognition, including WXO’s Experience Team of the Year Award, celebrating the collective standard of work the team continues to deliver.
New experiences for Horse Soldier Farms and Hoover Presidential Museum are among the launches planned for the coming months.
A growing portfolio of work spans cultural attractions, brand destinations, and major events worldwide, as clients and institutions across sectors increasingly seek story-driven transformation.
Meanwhile, as BRC’s Founder, Rogers will remain actively engaged with the leadership and creative teams. In addition to the 8 September publication of Deep Story, he continues to speak at industry conferences, write on the craft of experience design, and advise BRC on story and creative philosophy.
"I remain deeply engaged with BRC, consulting on story and the creative personality of the place," he says. "And I'm thrilled to get our methodology out into the public through Deep Story.
"The important work continues as our industry and BRC look toward the future. And we’re excited by what we see."
Last month, BRC, biodiversity intelligence company HiveTracks, and Expo 2031 Minnesota USA launched the event's official mascot, Wiggli, a curious scout honey bee.
Ahead of the expo, the mascot is now embarking on a five-year, five-region American tour and an international digital activation.
