Our Founding Members

It was a bright, mild morning in Arlington, Virginia that Saturday in 1972 when Ed Fuller stepped in to the sales office at the Twin Bridges Marriott and introduced himself to the hotel’s Sales Manager, Buck Laird. Fresh out of his 4 year stint in the U. S. Army, Fuller described his search for a civilian job – he had hoped to be picked up by American Airlines – but stated that Marriott seemed to take a shine to him, offering him a position as a Sales Trainee at Twin, the first Marriott Hotel. While Ed remained gainfully employed by Marriott for the next four decades (and some ten million air miles in his international career), Buck and his family returned to Hawaii – the homeport of his U.S. Navy ship and where he had met his wife – to manage a Big Island resort hotel and ultimately to pursue a career in advertising. Throughout those 40 years of growth, abrupt lifestyle changes and cantankerous career forces, one thing remained constant for Buck and Ed. Their brotherhood. And their determination to one day assuage their entrepreneurial genes by creating a business entity together. When Buck retired from his ad agency in 2008 he and Ed experimented with some variations of a business model that would serve the needs of independent business consultants. Upon Ed’s retirement from Marriott International in 2012, they launched Laguna Strategic Advisors LLC and created the Business Advisors Consortium to provide brand support and services to independent businesses and individuals in the consulting field. The two pals-turned-partners extend a warm welcome to all who visit this site. We’re glad you’re here. Click to see our bios: Ed Fuller Buck Laird