by Matthew Bull (@StixBull) So, in the end, in this magnificent digital-interfacing world we live in, I decided to say no to our suitors because of a piece of 3.7g card pictured herewith. You see, this card is mine, obviously. But it represents more than just my company name, details and my title; it represents ownership, something so precious only independent owners can appreciate it — or ex-owners.
I realised this when I handed it to someone the other day. I was truly proud of it. Not just because it’s unique in look but because no guy in corporate HQ told me the budget I had for it, chose the colors, or the print run. Or chose the address it reveals I work at.
Ok, enough of the waxing lyrical. Here’s what happens when you sell your company.
It dies.
Fortunately, though, in the corporate world, reincarnation is an absolute possibility; only no matter how good you were in your previous life, you don’t come back better, only different.
It dies because, unless you control the money, you don’t control the company.
Independents are all about investment
Quite simply, independently controlled companies are all about investment — be it in the people, the infrastructure, the product. Independents understand why spending US$20 000 to take people away to a small hut in the mountains to talk shit and get drunk is a great idea. Financial controllers in New York or Delhi overseeing their new ‘investment’s’ cost controls don’t.
Financial companies see a return on their investment being purely financial, whereas independents measure ROI on numerous things, from how many great people they’ve developed and the product they produce to how their reputation has grown and how many new, interesting clients and projects they get. Simple things, really.
The joy of founding a business and seeing it grow is the greatest feeling an entrepreneur ever experiences. Much better than the money. Because it means something.
A different goal
And when you sell out, you give your ability to control all that ‘soft’ stuff away. Because the new owners have a different goal. They couldn’t give a rat’s arse about anything but how quickly they can show the street (stock market) they earned the money back that they dished out to you for your business. The quicker the better. And then they milk the cow.
Now, let me tell you, the offer was a hard thing to say no to and therefore I refuse to judge those who say yes. For us, the primary lure was opportunity — access to more clients and more talent, therefore more chances to produce greatness. That’s compelling to an impatient human being such as me. But, ultimately, not compelling enough.
I want The Bull-White House to grow into something feared and loved in the industry worldwide — feared for our ability to win, loved for how we behave, how we treat our people and our competitors. And we would have, well, died as an entity, even if reincarnated in some different form elsewhere. All our hard work to date (I promise you, we have worked hard) would have disappeared.
Steal your soul
Holding companies steal your soul. Simple as that.
I concur we have not chosen the soft option; as I have always said, there are two roads you can take — the hard road or the wrong road. But what lies ahead for us promises infinite possibilities. Yes, at one end of the spectrum lies abject failure, at the other, glory. And, most certainly, real success will be hard work.
But what precious thing in life wasn’t hard to get?
So the revolution continues. I, my team and many others like us remain committed to taking back this industry from the money-men, the financial engineers who buy, don’t invent.
Stay true to what you believe in
All of you out there who haven’t sold out to the money-men, stay true to what you believe in. Be inspired by Dan Weiden, Dave Droga, Mother, King James, FoxP2.
For these are the people who keep our business true.
And our ambitions great.
Matthew Bull (@StixBull) started Lowe Bull in South Africa. Lowe was a minority partner until Bull left to start The Bull-White House in New York. He was also chief creative officer of Lowe Worldwide for many years and was involved in the purchase of several independent agencies for IPG/Lowe during his tenure. Matthew contributes the regular “Letter from New York” column to MarkLives.
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In 2012 David Droga sold a large portion of Droga 5 to WME for an estimated US$100 million. I believe everyone has a price. Selling a majority stake doesn’t have to be the death of your business. It can in fact give your business a much needed cash injection to take it to the next level. A new office in another city or country, investing in staff and infrastructure. I guess it all comes down to what you stipulate in your contract during negotiations and how aggressively you protect the culture of your business. Respect to you and the other independents who are financially stable enough to drive on through recessions and hard times. And respect to those who hold their staff’s best interests at heart during a buyout.