An ‘at press-time’ news brief in the Oct. 17 issue of Strategy might have left some readers with the impression Kert Advertising has gone out of business.
The brief, which appeared on page one, stated the Toronto agency had ‘closed its doors.’
In fact, Kert, headed by Norm Kert, founder and chairman, is still in operation, although it now positions itself as a consultancy, rather than an ad agency.
Kert says his plan for the future of the firm is to draw on his long experience in the ad business to provide agencies and clients with services specific to their industry.
On the client side, he hopes to assist marketers with such things as product positioning and agency searches.
On the agency side, he would like to ‘turn what [agencies] do creatively into better business.’
Earlier this year, Kert lost the $20-million Shoppers Drug Mart account, after holding it for 27 years, to Chiat/Day of Toronto.
Subsequently, he resigned the balance of the agency’s accounts, including the Ontario Volkswagen Dealers Association, and reduced the number of staff to four.
