jay/day

Today's alum spotlight is on Tom Cordner ...

Most of us wonder what it would be like to start your own agency. I did, but I lacked the courage to just do it on my own. I've never been afraid of a challenge. I started TeamOne with Saatchi on an unproven luxury brand. I then left the cozy environment of TeamOne after 15 years to go to Detroit's JWT to dig Ford out of a ditch. That was courageous, actually insane by most people.

I contend that every choice you make leads to other choices. After three and a half years and a number of significant Ford client changes they made a choice. In Detroit they don't fire agencies, they fire people. Their choice, me. So, I get a year sabbatical from JWT...they were very good to me in the process.

I spent a year finding out that I was over qualified for almost everything and not that I ever saw myself as a car guy, I was one now.

I talked to a great friend in Lee Clow and he turned me onto Rob Schwartz another great friend who in turn introduced me to Steve Bland. In August of 2007 Steve Bland introduced me to another guy, Bob Farina. He wants to start an agency as an adjunct to Cimarron (they do blockbuster movie trailers and dvd home sales). So, we talk and I'm asked to write a business plan, name the agency and have a positioning for the agency (I'm a freaking art director for chriss sakes).

I said, "go after down-n-dirty retail business (avoid pitching against big agencies)", thus the name 'Traffic', and tag line of "the fierce urgency of now" thanks to the venerable Martin Luther King Jr. In january 2, 2008 we start Traffic.

We pitched the launch of Toyota's credit card and won in January 2008. During the development of that work we got a call from SRI to pitch Mitsubishi. We pitched and won the business on June 11, 2008. I had no idea that the choice to leave TeamOne, going to Detroit would lead to unemployment where I actually considered retiring and the reality of that would lead to owning my own agency.

Am I lucky?... NO! Am I grateful?.... very.

Have I thanked 'Schwartzy'? .... yup (left him a message but don't know if he heard it. I'll kiss when I see him again just in case). Tom