Barely a month after taking over the assets of Publicis’ Vancouver office, Slingshot has launched itself into the market with a handful of partnerships and hiring announcements.
According to Bill Downie, Slingshot partner and creative director, Robert Clements is joining him as partner and production director, and Slingshot has formed a working partnership with Ryan Griffiths, president of Autobox Media, a 10-person open source CMS and e-commerce agency.
Downie caled his new business model a “cooperative” arrangement and sees it as an innovative way of expanding his full-time staff of five.
“When we were part of Publicis there was no need to build departments like digital and public relations. Because we were an offshoot of a multinational, we could use their resources back in Toronto,” said Downie. “This is a different way of approaching an agency that will give us critical mass, very much like a full service agency.”
Over the next couple of months Downie plans to add a social media, public relations and experiential marketing component and expects between 16 and 20 people will join his office.
“A lot of people out there are quick to dismiss traditional advertising and I would hate this to become a four letter word. It’s not about one or another. It’s about how they come together, and I think that philosophy will help us a lot,” he said.
Griffiths said Autobox has already worked with Slingshot on several clients and handles the public facing website and internal safety management systems for Canadian North, a small airline.
Slingshot took over Publicis’ assets in January, including 5,000-sq. ft. of office space in downtown Vancouver and a client list that includes Soyaworld, the Vancouver Whitecaps soccer team, Park Royal Shopping Centre, Canada Place and the BC Centre for Disease Control. Andrew Bruce, president and chief operating officer of Publicis Canada, told Marketing that reduced client need required his agency to pull out of the city.
“Out-of-market agencies have a hard time in Vancouver,” said Downie. “I don’t know if the word insular is too harsh, but I think in Vancouver we like to keep things more local. The mountains are quite a dividing line.”
Downie said Slingshot is 100% locally owned and his strategy is to beef up his digital strength and fill his office space with people that are owners in companies that complement his agency.
