STORY BY MEGAN VENABLE
Dooley Tombras is a proud third-generation steward of his family’s business, a devoted husband and father of two sons and an avid white-water rafting enthusiast with a passion for travel.
And, under his guidance as President of Tombras Advertising, he’s seen the agency be named 2025 Ad Age Agency of the Year.
Not too shabby for a Knoxville guy.
In spite of being a Vanderbilt graduate, Dooley is all about East Tennessee and all things local. His family name headlines University of Tennessee’s Tombras School of Advertising and Public relations, and even though the company has offices around the world, he is committed to keeping the headquarters here in Knoxville. “We want Tombras anchored here in the heartland of Knoxville,” he says. While other larger cities have enjoyed growth and expansion, they often can lose some of their charm. Not here, according to Dooley. “Knoxville hasn’t lost its soul.”
Drawing individuals to come to Knoxville to work for Tombras has proved to not be a problem either. “The mountains are a draw for a lot of young families,” Dooley says. “There’s not a lot of great agencies in smaller markets. It’s unexpected.”
Dooley himself spends as much time as he can in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park when his busy schedule allows. “One of the best whitewater rivers is the West Prong of the Little Pigeon River,” he claims as a world class stretch of water. “I’ve paddled almost every navigable stream in the park.” White water rafting in his past was more than a hobby, with Dooley winning an award for slalom champ in 2010.
Tombras services national entities such as Rubbermaid, ESPN and FritoLay, but also makes sure to work with iconic regional entities such as Bush’s Beans and Pilot Flying J. In fact, Dooley was at the helm when MoonPie initiated their critically acclaimed social media push and resulting success. “Tombras understands middle America,” Dooley says.
There are a lot of bigger markets that Tombras is interested in branching out into, especially since they launched internationally into Buenos Aires. Dooley finds himself on the road “a ton,” but always is home in Knoxville every week. He is proud of his familial heritage with Tombras; his family is young enough to travel with him quite a bit, and when home he shares a Gay Street office with CEO and father Charles Tombras Jr. “I’ve always wanted to work with him at Tombras,” Dooley says.
“Knoxville is a city on the rise, and there’s a direct collation with Tombras and downtown,” he says. With Dooley leading the way, Tombras is sure to keep the spotlight on the Scruffy Little City.