Advertising has become a little different"
Theophil Butz on times long past and his newfound enjoyment of the challenges of the present.
There are those who say it was the best sale ever to happen on the Swiss advertising scene. The Bosch and Butz agency was number 3 in Switzerland, employed around 70 people and made 14 million in sales per year before Walter Bosch and Theophil Butz sold their life's work to the Interpublic Group in 1998. "That was at a time when the stock market was only going up," says Butz, looking back on the period with satisfaction, because he was also able to use the proceeds of that deal to make another profit. "What does Theophil Butz do today?" is therefore more than just a curious question.
"I could make art. Paint, take photographs or even make a film. I always have to have a task and set myself to it," he muses in his villa on the Zürichberg. But he prefers to leave the art that the exquisite objects on the walls show to those who are really forced to do it. "I'm still passionate about advertising. Here I solve most tasks with flying colors." However, he no longer wants to work in a fixed structure. "When you are outside of agency life and know that you don't have to pay half a million francs in wages at the end of the month, you become a completely different person. You can see things from the outside."
For this reason, Theophil Butz prefers to call himself "Inspirator" today. He advises a young start-up of creative professionals on the strategic development of their agency. He has developed a business model for an art painter on how she can "generate added value" with her paintings by renting out her works through a furniture store. He gives a kitchen manufacturer tips on how to approach architects in a targeted manner. For Vollenweider Chocolatier Confiseur, Butz provided communications support for the expansion from Winterthur to Zurich and has since been responsible for comprehensive advertising, from decoration to strategic consulting.
Inspired by his life partner Inge Steiger (also an advertiser), for the time being still a hobby, but which grows every year more and more into a "line extension" of his work, is his wine from his own vineyard in Tuscany and olive oil. Butz bottles the Sangiovese with a little Merlot exclusively in magnum bottles. He sells the 300 units of "Theophil" per year to Witschi in Unterengstringen or via Vipasa in Seefeld, among others. Butz discovered the "business" with olive oil because the family of his housekeeper in Tuscany has barrels of it in the cellar and cannot sell the oil because all their acquaintances in the region also have their own trees. That's why the former graphic designer has now designed an exclusive label for "Olionovo" and imports the creamy, freshly pressed gold into Switzerland.
"I can't imagine doing nothing anymore. But I'm not pressed by a goal. I just want to be able to live out my spontaneous creativity for as long as possible."
Theophil Butz started on his path in the graphic arts class at the Basel School of Applied Arts. "There you learned what is graphic, what is beautiful." His talent also caught the eye of Markus Kutter and Karl Gerstner. They hired Butz for their fledgling GGK. After two years, the agency's second G came forward. Gredinger poached Butz to the Düsseldorf branch he managed. "There we had a 16-man agency door and great accounts we won Peter Stuyvesant." The second big budget was Jägermeister with the legendary slogan: "I drink Jägermeister, because " In this endless series with weekly unique ads in Spiegel and Stern, and later in Switzerland, Italy or even the U.S., Butz was responsible for the art direction. After four years, he was poached by TBWA Frankfurt. When he was hired, Jägermeister was to play a role once again. At TBWA, a parrot named Clemens lived as the agency mascot. "I drink Jägermeister because my name is Clemens ", was one day to be read in an advertisement with a parrot perched on the liquor bottle. For Michael Conrad, it was the secret message: The Butz is ready to change. Even today, Paul Gredinger still refers to the graduate as a "dog" when they go out to eat together.
At TBWA, Butz had the special clause written into his contract that he could work in a different city in the network every two years. After two years in Frankfurt, he was transferred to Paris. There, however, he very quickly forgot about the clause. Butz shot commercials with budgets in the millions and directors such as Ridley Scott. It was only after five years that Ueli Wiesendanger noticed the "breach of contract" and confronted Butz with the challenge of setting up a new TBWA in Zurich.
"There were moments in my life when I had to make a decision. For example, back in Paris. I had a job offer as a CD in New York and at the same time a request to do an agency in Zurich. I would have liked New York. But I decided to go to Zurich for my wife. Later, I was married to a New Yorker, and I was no longer married to this woman. You just never know how things will turn out."
In Zurich, TBWA bought a small 3-man agency. They had Rivella, but not much else that could have impressed Butz. Soon the thwarted New Yorker "closed the store on Höschgasse" and went looking for a villa on Zürichberg. "I'll be back next week," was his stipulation. Then he flew back to Paris. "I only worked half days. Flew in on Tuesday morning and back home to Paris on Thursday evening. It was a good time then, not like now. Advertising has become a little different."
On one of his many jobs, a certain Jean-Remy von Matt also worked on Butz's team. "His ideas never really caught my eye and I thought he needed to be woken up somehow. I recommended that he go to Germany." So Remy von Matt went to Hamburg, met Jung there and soon the two founded the successful advertising agency Jung von Matt. "A stay abroad can be inspiring. I've been able to see that in myself, too," says Butz. You're away from home, somehow admired as an expatriate Swiss. "Back then, we were unmistakably creative with a horse's tail, jeans and a little scarf around our necks." Fashion has passed. Other ideas have survived. The city of Hanover wanted to do something for tourists. Butz had the idea of creating a red thread through Hanover for visitors. The red thread can be walked from the train station in an hour if you want to see and experience something in the city. The red thread still exists 30 years later. An updated brochure can be obtained from a vending machine at the station. The first booklet was written by Harry Rowohlt. Wolf Wondratschek was another writer on Butz's team at GGK Düsseldorf. "Instead of texting, he was constantly daydreaming about a new novel. But Gredinger loved people like that around him."
One of these copywriters has even become a bestselling author. In his early days at GGK Basel, Butz worked with Martin Suter as a junior graphic designer. Later, Suter founded his own agency with Robert Stalder. When this was dissolved, Butz was looking for a new partner. "Martin Suter would have been the alternative to Walter Bosch. Today I think: It was good for Walter and also good for Suter that things turned out differently." Martin Suter did, however, later have a lasting influence on Butz with his film "Gulias Verschwinden." There, in a dialogue, it is said that one is no longer paid attention to in old age and should do something about it. "I took that to heart and have been walking around in two different colored shoes ever since. To do that, I dress as colorfully as possible. Otherwise you disappear." With his outfit, however, Theophil Butz is still regularly approached on the street.
Andreas Panzeri
"I could make art. Paint, take photographs or even make a film. I always have to have a task and set myself to it," he muses in his villa on the Zürichberg. But he prefers to leave the art that the exquisite objects on the walls show to those who are really forced to do it. "I'm still passionate about advertising. Here I solve most tasks with flying colors." However, he no longer wants to work in a fixed structure. "When you are outside of agency life and know that you don't have to pay half a million francs in wages at the end of the month, you become a completely different person. You can see things from the outside."
For this reason, Theophil Butz prefers to call himself "Inspirator" today. He advises a young start-up of creative professionals on the strategic development of their agency. He has developed a business model for an art painter on how she can "generate added value" with her paintings by renting out her works through a furniture store. He gives a kitchen manufacturer tips on how to approach architects in a targeted manner. For Vollenweider Chocolatier Confiseur, Butz provided communications support for the expansion from Winterthur to Zurich and has since been responsible for comprehensive advertising, from decoration to strategic consulting.
Inspired by his life partner Inge Steiger (also an advertiser), for the time being still a hobby, but which grows every year more and more into a "line extension" of his work, is his wine from his own vineyard in Tuscany and olive oil. Butz bottles the Sangiovese with a little Merlot exclusively in magnum bottles. He sells the 300 units of "Theophil" per year to Witschi in Unterengstringen or via Vipasa in Seefeld, among others. Butz discovered the "business" with olive oil because the family of his housekeeper in Tuscany has barrels of it in the cellar and cannot sell the oil because all their acquaintances in the region also have their own trees. That's why the former graphic designer has now designed an exclusive label for "Olionovo" and imports the creamy, freshly pressed gold into Switzerland.
"I can't imagine doing nothing anymore. But I'm not pressed by a goal. I just want to be able to live out my spontaneous creativity for as long as possible."
Theophil Butz started on his path in the graphic arts class at the Basel School of Applied Arts. "There you learned what is graphic, what is beautiful." His talent also caught the eye of Markus Kutter and Karl Gerstner. They hired Butz for their fledgling GGK. After two years, the agency's second G came forward. Gredinger poached Butz to the Düsseldorf branch he managed. "There we had a 16-man agency door and great accounts we won Peter Stuyvesant." The second big budget was Jägermeister with the legendary slogan: "I drink Jägermeister, because " In this endless series with weekly unique ads in Spiegel and Stern, and later in Switzerland, Italy or even the U.S., Butz was responsible for the art direction. After four years, he was poached by TBWA Frankfurt. When he was hired, Jägermeister was to play a role once again. At TBWA, a parrot named Clemens lived as the agency mascot. "I drink Jägermeister because my name is Clemens ", was one day to be read in an advertisement with a parrot perched on the liquor bottle. For Michael Conrad, it was the secret message: The Butz is ready to change. Even today, Paul Gredinger still refers to the graduate as a "dog" when they go out to eat together.
At TBWA, Butz had the special clause written into his contract that he could work in a different city in the network every two years. After two years in Frankfurt, he was transferred to Paris. There, however, he very quickly forgot about the clause. Butz shot commercials with budgets in the millions and directors such as Ridley Scott. It was only after five years that Ueli Wiesendanger noticed the "breach of contract" and confronted Butz with the challenge of setting up a new TBWA in Zurich.
"There were moments in my life when I had to make a decision. For example, back in Paris. I had a job offer as a CD in New York and at the same time a request to do an agency in Zurich. I would have liked New York. But I decided to go to Zurich for my wife. Later, I was married to a New Yorker, and I was no longer married to this woman. You just never know how things will turn out."
In Zurich, TBWA bought a small 3-man agency. They had Rivella, but not much else that could have impressed Butz. Soon the thwarted New Yorker "closed the store on Höschgasse" and went looking for a villa on Zürichberg. "I'll be back next week," was his stipulation. Then he flew back to Paris. "I only worked half days. Flew in on Tuesday morning and back home to Paris on Thursday evening. It was a good time then, not like now. Advertising has become a little different."
On one of his many jobs, a certain Jean-Remy von Matt also worked on Butz's team. "His ideas never really caught my eye and I thought he needed to be woken up somehow. I recommended that he go to Germany." So Remy von Matt went to Hamburg, met Jung there and soon the two founded the successful advertising agency Jung von Matt. "A stay abroad can be inspiring. I've been able to see that in myself, too," says Butz. You're away from home, somehow admired as an expatriate Swiss. "Back then, we were unmistakably creative with a horse's tail, jeans and a little scarf around our necks." Fashion has passed. Other ideas have survived. The city of Hanover wanted to do something for tourists. Butz had the idea of creating a red thread through Hanover for visitors. The red thread can be walked from the train station in an hour if you want to see and experience something in the city. The red thread still exists 30 years later. An updated brochure can be obtained from a vending machine at the station. The first booklet was written by Harry Rowohlt. Wolf Wondratschek was another writer on Butz's team at GGK Düsseldorf. "Instead of texting, he was constantly daydreaming about a new novel. But Gredinger loved people like that around him."
One of these copywriters has even become a bestselling author. In his early days at GGK Basel, Butz worked with Martin Suter as a junior graphic designer. Later, Suter founded his own agency with Robert Stalder. When this was dissolved, Butz was looking for a new partner. "Martin Suter would have been the alternative to Walter Bosch. Today I think: It was good for Walter and also good for Suter that things turned out differently." Martin Suter did, however, later have a lasting influence on Butz with his film "Gulias Verschwinden." There, in a dialogue, it is said that one is no longer paid attention to in old age and should do something about it. "I took that to heart and have been walking around in two different colored shoes ever since. To do that, I dress as colorfully as possible. Otherwise you disappear." With his outfit, however, Theophil Butz is still regularly approached on the street.
Andreas Panzeri
