Rethink’s managing partner Nicolas Quintal has spent the past few weeks scouring Montreal for office space, looking for the perfect location to house the agency’s newest office.
“Marble isn’t important to us, big glass doors aren’t important to us – I just want a place that can be comfortable and fun for the employees,” said Quintal. “There are so many pros and cons to all of them.
“If you have any recommendations, I’m all ears.”
The opening won’t happen until March, but trekking through the Montreal chill, looking at one property after another, Quintal is already feeling the pressure. “It’s coming quickly that’s for sure,” he said with a laugh.
Following a couple of years of contemplation, Rethink confirmed last week that it plans to open its Montreal office. It becomes the third office for the independent agency, which was established in Vancouver in 1999 and opened its Toronto office in 2010.
It has since grown into one of the country’s largest independents, with more than 100 employees and a client roster featuring Molson CoorsCanada, Mr. Lube and Sobeys.
The agency’s growth has been “very organic,” said Quintal, with client needs dictating the opening first of Toronto and now Montreal, where increased client activity made expansion viable.
The QSR chain A&W, for example, has seen its Quebec footprint expand from about 60 restaurants to 110 in recent years, while Molson Coors brands including Coors Light, Rickards and Canadian all have a major presence in the market.
Quintal said plans to open a Montreal office only began to take shape in the past two or three months.
He will head the Montreal office, returning to the city he left in 2006 for a position as creative director with Rethink’s Vancouver office – where he worked on a range of national accounts. He became one of Rethink’s 15 owner-partners in 2012.
Rethink plans to “actively” pursue Montreal-based clients…eventually. Quintal said its work in the early stages will be on behalf of existing clients seeking Quebec-specific expertise. The office will employ less than 10 people to start, but will grow as Rethink begins pursuing more Quebec-specific business.
“For now we’re going there to serve our national clients better,” he said. “We’re not going there to conquer Quebec – we have a need for Quebec work. If somebody goes there just to conquer the market and don’t understand it, it can lead to a big mess.”
