Flo (Progressive Insurance)

Flo
Flo, as portrayed by actress Stephanie Courtney
First appearance	2008
Created by	Arnold Worldwide
Portrayed by	Stephanie Courtney
Company	Progressive Corporation
Information
Aliases	The Progressive Girl
Gender	Female
Occupation	Insurance salesperson
Nationality	American

Flo is a fictional salesperson character appearing in more than 100 commercials for Progressive Corporation, beginning in 2008. Portrayed by actress and comedian Stephanie Courtney, the character has developed a fan base on social networks and has become an iconic advertising mascot.

The character debuted in 2008 through several television commercials and has since appeared in radio and print advertisements and web banners. "Flo", an upbeat store employee for Progressive Corporation, was created by the Boston-based agency Arnold Worldwide, specifically copywriter John Park and art director Steve Reepmeyer.

In 2011, Progressive introduced an Australian counterpart to Flo, named Kitty, played by Australian actress Holly Austin.

As of November 2014, Flo had appeared in 100 commercials (see below).

Flo is a cashier and is recognizable by her extreme enthusiasm, name tag, sparkling white no-wrinkles uniform, upbeat personality, heavy makeup, and retro hairstyle. According to Courtney, it takes one hour to prepare Flo's hair and another to apply her make-up. A December 15, 2008 article in Advertising Age described Flo as "a weirdly sincere, post-modern Josephine the Plumber who just really wants to help. She has: the brand is flourishing." This was later echoed in an article from Duane Dudek in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel on May 20, 2014, who credits Flo for inspiring a new trend of female commercial pitch people and cementing her legacy alongside Josephine and Palmolive Dishwashing Detergent's Madge the Manicurist.

In November 2014, Progressive Corporation aired its 100th ad featuring Flo and introduced other members of her family including her mom, dad, brother, sister, and grandfather. All of these characters were also played by Stephanie Courtney, who was reported to have spent about 12 hours doing hair and makeup transitions for the ad.