Born to Mexican immigrants, Pedro vacuumed his school hallways for subsidised tuition. Fast forward to 2024, he was named Ad Age’s Advertising Executive of the Year. The rocket ride began in 1998 at The Richards Group, where Pedro quickly rose through the ranks. After leading their digital practice, he founded the agency’s Hispanic arm – Richards/Lerma – serving clients like The Home Depot, Metro by T-Mobile, and Keurig Dr Pepper. But shortly after rebranding to LERMA/ in 2020, his parent company faced a national crisis and lost 40% of its business. Pedro went independent, and lawsuits followed. Defying the odds, LERMA/ went on to win Ad Age’s 2022 and 2023 Small Agency of the Year Award; AdWeek’s 2024 Fastest Growing Agencies Award; and Ad Age’s Standout Agency Award in that same year. In 2024, he also partnered with Richard Edelman and Luis Miguel Messianu, creating MEL, a Hispanic-led communications agency.