Loss of Gregg account wallops Pearson McMahon.

About 15 of the 44 employees at Pearson McMahon Fletcher England will lose jobs by the end of June due to a decision by the Indianapolis advertising firm not to pursue a renewal of its long-time HH Gregg account.

Included in the 15 are Executive Vice President Larry Fletcher and Chief Financial Officer Terri Brown, said President and Chief Creative Officer Ron Pearson. Both partners are retiring.

Another five people involved with the account will be shifted to existing and new clients.

Profit margins had become so tight that it wasn’t worth trying to compete when the Indianapolis appliance and electronics retailer put the account up for bid earlier this year, Pearson said. The ad firm handled Gregg’s advertising account for 24 years. 

Gregg, which announced last week that it would follow through at an unspecified date on long-anticipated plans to go public, is in talks with Zimmerman Advertising of Fort Lauderdale, Fla., to take over the account.