Ernie Monroe calls it a career

Ernie Monroe, a fixture in the marketing and advertising industry for the past four decades, is now kicking his cowboy boots up in retirement.

Last week, Ernie officially retired from DaviesMoore, where he’s spent the last seven years, following the merger of Davies Rourke and MMG into DaviesMoore.

Before joining Davies Rourke in 1994, Ernie spent 15 years in advertising business in the Midwest, where he created and produced campaigns for national and regional consumer and business-to-business products, including food, beverage, financial services, and hospitality.

In his blog post about Ernie’s retirement, Edward Moore wrote:

…But, eight years ago, I got the opportunity to work with Ernie. I discovered something about what was inside the large artist in cowboy boots I’d met years earlier.  It turns out, Ernie is a sweetheart.

I’ve learned this through late night, heart-to-heart talks about the industry. I’ve learned this by watching his desire to do good work. I’ve learned this watching him take younger designers, illustrators, and creative directors (some who were technically his boss) under his wing to impart knowledge and advice that can only be gained through years of the hard knocks in this business. I’ve learned this by watching him dance with Mary and by listening to Mary talk about her husband. I’ve learned this by watching his eyes as he talks about his son, Ted.

Ernie is blunt, but speaks the truth. He is wickedly talented with a pencil in his hand, yet unafraid to learn the ways of the mouse. Ernie has cheated death and found true love.  He has driven fast, taken lots of chances and made a career out of what he loves. Ernie has made an impact on me and our business.

We’ll miss him around here. Congrats on your retirement.

Also, a few weeks earlier, the crew at DaviesMoore gathered to hear stories from Ernie and advice accumulated throughout his career:

Enjoy your retirement, Ernie. You’ve earned it.

In Memory: John Givens

The Idaho advertising community lost one of it’s founders with the passing on John Givens on Monday, February 1st, 2010.

Not familiar with the name?  Unfortunately, neither was I until last week.

John Givens was a third-generation Boisean, a graduate of Boise High School and after service in the United States Naval Air Corp during World War II, a student at the Boise Junior College and the University of Idaho, among others.

John began his career in advertising in 1947, and in 1952 he founded Givens-Davies Advertising, Inc. with Kenneth R. Davies.  He helped grow the agency to become one of the largest and most powerful in Idaho, and a major player in the Pacific Northwest.  Note: Givens-Davies would later go on to become Davies-Rourke, and in its current form is known as DaviesMoore.

Later, he went on to form John Givens Advertising, Inc., and in 1988 was awarded the Silver Medal from the Boise Advertising Federation.  John retired from advertising in 1987.

Among his many accomplishments, John was instrumental in coordinating public relations and fundraising efforts for the Morrison Center for the Performing Arts, and creating the Idaho Governor’s Cup golf tournament scholarship fundraiser.

John is survived by five children, two grandchildren, three great-grandchildren and two step-grandchildren.

A memorial service was held on Saturday, February 6th.

While I never had the chance to meet John Givens, I would like to offer a belated ‘thank you’ to him on behalf of the entire advertising and marketing community in Idaho for everything that he did over the years, and those that he helped guide and inspire.

A complete obituary is available here, if you’d like to read more.

Rockies – The Winners: Direct Marketing

Flat, Campaign, 3 or More:

CitationDavies Rourke
Primary Health Medical Group, “Physician & Residency Recruitment Direct Mail Campaign”
Concept:  Jeff Nielsen
Copy:  Jeff Nielsen
Art Director:  Kelly Frew
Photography:  Stock
Producer:  ESP Printing

The New Boise Agency Suspense is Over

A little over a week ago, NewBoiseAgency first appeared on the scene, with a full page ad in the Idaho Business Review, a Twitter profile and a teaser website. The folks behind the scenes started following, and actively engaged with many within the marketing and advertising community on Twitter – myself included.

Central to their campaign was the reveal of the merger of two Boise advertising agencies.

Today, that reveal is complete.

Davies Rourke and Marketing Media Group have joined forces to create DaviesMoore.


From their official announcement:

Two Boise based advertising agencies Marketing Media Group (MMG) and Davies Rourke announced Tuesday that the two companies will join forces to form DaviesMoore.

“We are all excited about this union as it will not only benefit both agencies, but it also greatly benefits our clients because they get both years of experience and wisdom combined with an abundance of energy, talent and fresh ideas,” said Edward Moore, president of DaviesMoore. “On the surface, there’s a contradiction because we are a truly diverse group of people with differing perspectives, yet it’s clear that we have a common goal: to provide the best marketing recommendations and solutions possible to generate positive results for our clients in a time when they need a positive return on their investment more than ever.”

DaviesMoore, who can now claim to be both the newest and oldest advertising agency in the state of Idaho, draws on the history of Davies Rourke, which was originally founded by Ken Davies as Givens-Davies Advertising in 1953, and then incorporated as Davies & Rourke Advertising in 1973. It also harnesses the momentum that MMG has gained over the past 11 years. MMG, founded in 1998, has grown from an original staff of three and a shared office space with the Idaho Steelheads to their current size and a client roster that includes sport entertainment, recreational, retail, higher education, packaged goods and more.

DaviesMoore will service the existing client rosters of both Davies Rourke and MMG. The combined offices will be located in what is now the former MMG office space, at 6th and Bannock in downtown Boise.

To Edward Moore, Jeff Nielsen and the entire staff of DaviesMoore, congratulations on the merger, the week-long launch anticipation, and what will certainly be a long and successful tenure in the business.

New Clients for Davies Rourke

Davies Rourke in Boise recently announced two new client wins:

AREVA Inc, which is “an international company that specializes in technological solutions for carbon dioxide-free power generation and electricity transmission. The company’s U.S. headquarters is in Bethesda, Maryland.”

For AREVA, Davies Rourke will produce marketing collateral materials for AREVA’s multi-billion dollar Eagle Rock uranium enrichment facility planned for construction in Bonneville County, Idaho.

Additionally, Davies Rourke has been selected by Port of Subs “to provide strategic marketing and media placement services for franchisee- and company-owned restaurants in southwestern Idaho.”

Congratulations to the folks at Davies Rourke on the new client wins.

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